Ripple Labs: From Crypto Pioneer to Traditional Finance Challenger

Ripple Labs, now a dominant force in the cryptocurrency landscape, isn’t resting on its laurels. CEO Brad Garlinghouse revealed to CNBC the company’s aggressive strategy of bridging the gap between the burgeoning Web3 ecosystem and the established world of traditional finance. This ambitious pursuit comes amid a backdrop of increasing institutional interest in digital assets, positioning Ripple to potentially reshape the financial services sector.

Speaking at the Ripple Swell 2025 conference in New York, Garlinghouse articulated Ripple’s vision to offer a comprehensive suite of traditional financial services underpinned by blockchain infrastructure. This strategy leverages the inherent advantages of blockchain technology – transparency, security, and efficiency – to enhance existing financial systems.

At its core, a blockchain operates as a decentralized digital ledger, meticulously recording transactions across a distributed network of computers, thereby eliminating the need for a central intermediary.

“We’re strategically investing in the future, anticipating the market’s trajectory,” Garlinghouse explained. “Our recent acquisitions have focused on entities within traditional finance, enabling us to introduce crypto-enabled solutions to this established domain.”

Aiming at finance-focused firms

Ripple has embarked on a significant acquisition spree in 2025, deploying nearly $4 billion in capital to construct a robust financial services powerhouse. Key acquisitions include prime brokerage Hidden Road for approximately $1.3 billion in April and software firm GTreasury for over $1 billion this fall. Building on this momentum, Ripple launched Ripple Prime, a brokerage service providing U.S.-based institutions access to over-the-counter (OTC) spot market trading across a range of digital assets. The company also recently secured $500 million in new funding, elevating its market valuation to an impressive $40 billion.

Ripple’s intensified focus on traditional finance aligns with the surging institutional demand for digital assets. This interest is further fueled by a regulatory environment that has become more favorable under President Donald Trump, who earlier this year oversaw the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodities Futures Trading Commission’s decision to scale back digital assets regulations.

Financial giants like Bank of America and Citigroup are actively exploring the application of stablecoins, with Citi slated to launch a crypto custody service for its clients in 2026. JPMorgan has also signaled its intent to introduce a stablecoin-like “deposit token” on Coinbase’s public blockchain, Base. Beyond stablecoins, institutional investors have injected substantial capital into spot Bitcoin ETFs since their U.S. launch in January 2024.

“The U.S. has transitioned from a cautious stance to a significantly more supportive one regarding crypto, and the profound implications of this shift are often underestimated,” Garlinghouse asserted, emphasizing the potential transformative effect on the broader crypto market.

Institutional integration

Beyond developing its own services, Ripple aims to forge strategic partnerships to license its XRP Ledger technology to larger institutions venturing into the crypto space, according to Garlinghouse. Such alliances could be particularly beneficial to XRP, the native token of the XRP Ledger, a decentralized blockchain designed for swift and cost-effective transactions.

“The more we can enhance utility and effectively scale solutions that leverage XRP at its core, the more advantageous it will be for the XRP ecosystem,” Garlinghouse stated.

While XRP has remained relatively stable in 2025, ether and bitcoin have experienced substantial growth, reaching record highs of approximately $3,900 and $126,000, respectively. Despite the potential for high-profile partnerships to boost XRP’s price, Garlinghouse acknowledges that striking deals with traditional institutions may encounter hurdles due to ongoing delays in establishing comprehensive regulatory frameworks for cryptocurrency companies and holders in the U.S.

The crypto industry had initially hoped for the passage of the Clarity Act, a comprehensive digital assets market structure bill, before the year’s end. However, with the U.S. government shutdown entering its sixth week, progress on establishing legislative guidelines for the industry has been stalled.

“Until we have that crucial legal framework in place, progress will be challenging,” Garlinghouse emphasized. “Banks require and are actively seeking this clarity to fully commit to and embrace digital assets.”