Prime broker Hidden Road’s subsidiary, Hidden Road Partners CIV US LLC has been granted approval by the Financial Industry Regulation Authority (FINRA) to operate as a FINRA-member broker-dealer.
Hidden Road’s new status as a FINRA-member will allow the firm to offer new and existing institutional clients with services in fixed income assets, including regulatory-compliant prime brokerage, clearing and financing.
The approval also builds on Hidden Road’s recent expansion of its fixed income prime brokerage platform, which saw the firm sign a deal in June 2024 to distribute Trading Technologies’ (TT) multi-asset trading platform to its clients.
Hidden Road’s fixed income prime brokerage platform currently spans fixed income repo and global funding services.
“Our broker-dealer registration is a significant step in the development of Hidden Road’s fixed income prime brokerage platform and bolsters our capabilities in traditional financial markets,” said Hidden Road president, Noel Kimmel.
“As a FINRA member, we will be able to bring our best-in-class, technology-driven fixed income service offering to an expanded universe of institutional clients. Our business has tremendous momentum, and we look forward to continuing to provide superior execution and support to our clients amidst today’s exceptionally dynamic market environment.”
The move comes following Hidden Road’s announcement at the beginning of April that it would be acquired by digital asset infrastructure provider Ripple in an agreement valued at $1.25 billion.
The deal is set to close in the coming months, subject to regulatory approval, and will mark one of the largest acquisitions in digital assets, with Ripple becoming the first crypto business to own a global multi-asset prime broker.
The acquisition will see Hidden Road transfer its post-trade activity to XRPL, while Ripple is expected to offer custody services and Ripple Payments, the crypto business’ cross-border payment solution, to Hidden Road’s clients.