Ripple Spends Nearly $4 Billion on Traditional Finance Acquisitions to Expand Institutional Reach

Ripple Labs has spent almost $4 billion this year acquiring and investing in traditional finance companies, CEO Brad Garlinghouse said during an interview with CNBC at the Ripple Swell 2025 conference in New York. The strategy is aimed at extending Ripple’s blockchain infrastructure into established financial markets.

Garlinghouse said the acquisitions are intended to position Ripple ahead of future market developments. He added that the company is focusing on traditional finance assets to deliver crypto-enabled services to mainstream institutions.

Ripple’s recent deals include the $1.3 billion acquisition of prime brokerage Hidden Road in April and the purchase of software provider GTreasury for more than $1 billion later in the year. The company also launched a new brokerage service offering U.S. institutions over-the-counter spot trading across multiple tokens.

Ripple raised $500 million in fresh funding last week, valuing the company at $40 billion. The firm is also working to license its XRP Ledger technology to large financial institutions seeking to expand their digital asset operations.

Garlinghouse said broader adoption of solutions built around XRP would strengthen the XRP ecosystem, but regulatory uncertainty remains a major obstacle. He noted that banks require clear legal guidance before committing to deeper engagement with crypto.

The remarks come as U.S. lawmakers continue to debate the Clarity Act, a proposed digital assets market structure bill that remains stalled amid the federal government shutdown. Garlinghouse said the lack of progress is hindering banks’ involvement in digital assets despite rising institutional demand.

Ripple is also expanding the reach of its regulated, dollar-backed stablecoin RLUSD. The company is working with Mastercard, WebBank, and Gemini Trust to test RLUSD for fiat settlement through the XRP Ledger. The stablecoin recently received approval to operate in the Dubai International Financial Centre and has expanded into Africa through partnerships with Chipper Cash and VALR to support cross-border payments.

These initiatives form part of Ripple’s broader effort to integrate blockchain-based infrastructure into traditional financial systems and drive institutional use of crypto-enabled settlement tools.