Japanese financial services company SBI Holdings has drawn public attention to Ripple’s acquisition of fast-growing prime broker Hidden Road.
This came days after Ripple announced it spent $1.25 billion to acquire Hidden Road. Ripple portrayed the acquisition as one of the biggest in the digital asset industry. Following the acquisition, Ripple became the first crypto company to own and operate a multi-asset prime broker.
The deal sent shockwaves across the financial industry, with SBI Holdings and its subsidiary SBI Ripple Asia highlighting the milestone.
SBI Highlights Ripple’s Latest Acquisition
SBI stressed that Ripple paid $1.25 billion for the acquisition using a multi-faceted payment method that included XRP, treasury stock, and cash. The announcement from SBI Holdings highlighted Ripple’s plans to infuse billions of dollars into Hidden Road’s operations.
Specifically, Ripple will infuse the funds into Hidden Road’s clearing, prime brokerage, and finance platform. SBI indicated that the rationale behind this infusion is to meet capital needs on a rapid scale.
Interestingly, the press release mentioned the role of Ripple’s USD-pegged stablecoin (RLUSD) in the acquisition.
According to the announcement, RLUSD will be the first stablecoin to facilitate efficient cross-margining between crypto and traditional assets. This functionality will bolster RLUSD’s role as a suitable enterprise-grade USD-backed stablecoin.
Hidden Road to Utilize XRPL for Its Post Trades
Further, SBI Holdings noted that Hidden Road will transition its post-trade activities to the XRP Ledger, endorsing XRPL as a leading blockchain for decentralized finance and financial institutions.
Last week, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse confirmed that Hidden Road clears about $3 trillion annually for more than 300 global financial institutions. The prime broker achieved the feat through fiat rails despite experiencing slower transaction speed and high fees.
However, following Ripple’s acquisition of Hidden Road, Garlinghouse expects the prime broker to clear a portion of its $3 trillion flows using XRPL and its native token XRP for faster and lower-cost settlements.
Meanwhile, SBI’s comments demonstrate how the Japanese financial services company views the acquisition. The acquisition is a strategic move that could benefit Ripple and its partners, including SBI Holdings.
Notably, in the press release commenting on the Hidden Road acquisition, SBI Holdings referred to Ripple as its ‘important partner.’ It first partnered with Ripple in 2016, creating SBI Ripple Asia, which leverages XRP for cross-border settlements.
Interestingly, SBI Holdings stayed with Ripple despite battling a multi-year lawsuit with the SEC. With the lawsuit nearing its conclusion, SBI expects Ripple to experience significant growth.
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