Is Ripple’s Hidden Road deal part of a SoftBank-like playbook?
Ripple has acquired Hidden Road for $1.25 billion, enabling the use of its stablecoin, Ripple USD (RLUSD), as collateral in prime brokerage products and migrating Hidden Road's operations to the XRP Ledger. Ripple's acquisition strategy mirrors SoftBank's approach, focusing on building a financial services ecosystem through investments rather than in-house development. Ripple holds significant assets, including 4.56 billion XRP valued at approximately $11 billion and 37.13 billion XRP in escrow. Recent acquisitions, including custody firms Metaco and Standard Custody, expand Ripple's influence in traditional finance. The company aims to continue acquiring firms, with a recent bid of $4 billion to $5 billion for Circle being rejected. Regulatory challenges remain, but momentum is shifting positively for the crypto industry following a settlement with the SEC. Stablecoin competition persists, particularly against USDC and PayPal USD, amid unresolved regulatory frameworks.
