Ripple has expanded its institutional brokerage business with the launch of Delta One within Ripple Prime, adding equity derivatives to a platform that already covers foreign exchange, fixed income, derivatives, and digital assets.
The Delta One service went live on Aug. 27 for institutional investors, including hedge funds, asset managers, and other financial institutions. Clients can execute total return swaps linked to U.S.-listed equities, indices, and digital assets, while also using cross-margining across supported asset classes through a single counterparty relationship.
Ripple Prime Adds Equity Derivatives
Ripple Prime President Noel Kimmel said:
“The launch of our Delta One business is an important development for Ripple Prime and a natural extension of the platform we’ve built.”
“Clients can now access equities, FX, derivatives, fixed income, and digital asset prime brokerage, clearing, and financing all through a single counterparty that is built for the future of finance: cross-asset, structurally aligned, 24/7. This is in line with what institutional market participants are asking for today, and we are proud to be the ones delivering it,”
The expansion follows Ripple Prime’s U.S. digital asset spot prime brokerage launch in November. That service added institutional over-the-counter spot trading alongside swaps, futures, and options, broadening Ripple Prime’s institutional trading capabilities.
Total Return Swaps Broaden Market Access
Total return swaps give investors economic exposure to an asset or index without requiring direct ownership. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission describes total return swaps as agreements in which payments depend on changes in the value of a specified asset, index, or related derivative, multiplied by an agreed notional amount.
The structure can help institutions manage market exposure through derivatives while consolidating positions across supported asset classes. Ripple Prime’s institutional derivatives operations also include clearing and financing services as markets move toward continuous trading.
Ripple Prime Expands Its Institutional Platform
Ripple said its Delta One operation differs from desks that combine derivatives services with market-making or proprietary trading businesses. According to the company, the operation focuses solely on clearing and financing flows.
The business developed from Ripple’s acquisition of Hidden Road, which was later rebranded as Ripple Prime. The acquisition provided the foundation for Ripple Prime’s broader institutional brokerage platform.
Delta One Launch Follows New Financing
Ripple said the new business enters the equity derivatives market with more than $1 billion in regulatory net capital. On Aug. 18, Ripple Prime closed an upsized $275 million private placement of senior unsecured notes.
The senior notes offering was completed to support Ripple Prime’s continued growth and followed a $200 million debt facility obtained earlier in the year from funds managed by Neuberger Specialty Finance.
With Delta One now live, institutional clients can access equities, indices, digital assets, foreign exchange, fixed income, and derivatives through Ripple Prime’s broader brokerage, clearing, and financing platform.