Crypto mergers and public listings in the U.S. have soared in 2025. In just four months, deals have hit $8.2 billion across 88 transactions. This figure already triples the total for all of 2024. The surge marks a new phase of blending traditional finance (TradFi) with decentralised finance (DeFi).

So far, five trends are driving this boom. Companies like Twenty One Capital are buying Bitcoin for their treasuries. Traditional firms are merging with crypto infrastructure providers. Many deals focus on institutional services, such as Ripple’s earlier purchase of Metaco. Others involve combining crypto and traditional trading platforms. Finally, token-based projects are merging.

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Ripple’s Acquisition of Hidden Road Stands Out

Among all these deals, Ripple’s $1.25 billion move to buy Hidden Road is getting special praise. Pro-XRP ($2.02) lawyer John Deaton called it “possibly the best example” of the TradFi-DeFi connection. Hidden Road processes over $3 trillion annually for more than 300 institutional clients. Now, by integrating with Ripple’s XRP Ledger (XRPL), settlement times have dropped from 24 hours to just 3 to 5 seconds.

Ripple has introduced its RLUSD ($1.00) stablecoin as collateral for trades. This move directly connects blockchain infrastructure to institutional workflows. Deaton emphasised that Ripple now leads institutional DeFi by combining DeFi’s speed with traditional finance’s (TradFi) scale.

Ripple Expands Rapidly into Crypto Custody

Ripple’s growth doesn’t stop there. Besides buying Metaco, Ripple also acquired Standard Custody. It launched Ripple Custody to offer institutions a comprehensive range of services, including stablecoins, payments, and secure asset storage.

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According to Deaton, Ripple’s custody push prepares it for the coming tokenization boom. Experts anticipate that the custody market will surpass $16 trillion by 2030. Ripple is building the tools banks will need to tokenize stocks, bonds, and real estate using the XRPL. RLUSD will fuel these transactions.

Deaton noted that Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse appears determined to recover the momentum lost during Ripple’s battle with the SEC. Now, Ripple is moving at full speed into the future of finance.

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