Ripple launches 'Delta One' service for institutions

The service lets clients trade U.S.-listed stocks, indices and digital assets under a single margin, and it is distinguished by allowing cross-margining between stock positions and crypto positions. It also offers a 24-hour crypto institutional clearing and intermediation service, improving access for institutional investors.

The core of the Delta One service is the 'total return swap' contract. Rather than buying a stock directly, the contract exchanges only the stock's performance, meaning its price movement. Major financial institutions such as hedge funds, market makers and ETF issuers already use this structure to maximize capital efficiency.

Ripple Prime runs a global multi-asset prime brokerage business with roughly $3 trillion in annual volume, built on Hidden Road, which it acquired for $1.25 billion. The firm does not invest its own capital or make markets directly; it focuses solely on operating the clearing and financing plumbing as an intermediary. This model is expected to contribute to greater market stability and trust.

U.S. Treasuries are regarded as one of the most valuable assets in the world not simply because demand for them is high. Treasuries serve as core collateral in the financial system and are used in the repo market to generate trillions of dollars in daily cash liquidity. Unlike ordinary investment assets, collateral often sees demand rise during crises, which makes it an important pillar of financial stability.

Previously, XRP played the role of a 'bloodstream' for cross-border remittances, with a short settlement time of about three seconds. However, with clear evidence of collateral demand for XRP appearing in the Delta One service and in credit rating documents, its role is changing. This suggests XRP is evolving from a source of liquidity into a stable collateral asset that acts like an 'anchor', holding a vessel in place within the financial system. Collateral keeps assets locked up rather than sold on the market, which reduces circulating supply. Over the long term, this could become a factor supporting the asset's value.

A collateral 'haircut' or discount rate is a differentiated percentage applied based on the volatility of the asset pledged as collateral. The less risk that the collateral will fluctuate, the lower the discount rate, and this determines the height of the collateral ladder. For assets with clearer regulation, safer custody and deeper trading, lower haircuts raise the asset's utility without any increase in the coefficient.

This concern also surfaced when ETFs were introduced, and the effects of synthetic products on the market need to be analyzed from several angles.

Even when the desk owes the client money, the rise in the value of the assets it bought offsets that payment, which creates a structure in which actual assets continue to accumulate in the market's vaults.

The collateral list that Ripple Prime accepts includes U.S. Treasuries, fiat currency, bitcoin and XRP. This means institutional investors can use XRP in place of cash to meet margin requirements for stock positions. At that point XRP is no longer just an object of price speculation; it takes on the role of working capital essential to an institution's operations, which marks an important shift.

As of the end of June, Goldman Sachs was reported to hold about $86.5 million in XRP ETFs. This may reflect less an investment purpose and more an effort to secure inventory for offering XRP-related products to clients. It can be read in the same vein as stocking shelves in advance so that goods are ready for customers.

The ultimate form of an asset is not simply one with a high price, but one that no one wants to sell. U.S. Treasuries gained standardized market depth and high liquidity through this process of becoming collateral, establishing themselves at the core of the financial system. This shows that an asset's true value lies beyond its price, in its function of not being sold, that is, in its capacity as collateral.

The theme of the Jackson Hole Symposium on August 29 (local time) was set as 'Financial Innovation, Payments and Policy'. This suggests the Federal Reserve is already paying attention to this direction. How collateral and the future of settlement systems are addressed in upcoming speeches will be closely watched, as they may offer important clues to the policy direction of financial markets.