Ripple Aims to Create the 'Next Amazon' Centered Around XRP, According to Crypto CEO

Ripple's recent actions in 2025, particularly its acquisition strategy, are being viewed by Jake Claver, CEO of Digital Ascension Group, as more than opportunistic. Instead, he sees these moves as part of a larger vision to create a comprehensive “Amazon of financial infrastructure,” where XRP and Ripple’s stablecoin, RLUSD, serve crucial roles in the financial ecosystem.

Key Takeaways

Ripple aims to establish a financial infrastructure akin to Amazon's, using XRP and its stablecoin RLUSD as foundational elements.
CEO Jake Claver highlights the importance of building infrastructure in realizing this vision, similar to Amazon's strategy.
Ripple's significant acquisitions, including Hidden Road, Rail, GTreasury, and Palisade, are crucial to creating a robust institutional product known as “Ripple 1.”
Claver argues that Ripple's vertical integration will offer competitive advantages in the financial services industry.

In a recent video, Claver revealed that Ripple allocated about $2.45 billion toward acquisitions in the last seven months of 2025. He believes these strategic purchases are the foundational components of a master plan akin to Amazon's rise, which was rooted in building robust infrastructure rather than merely selling products.

The Vision: Ripple as the Financial Infrastructure Giant

Claver articulated a clear analogy, stating, “Amazon’s success came from building infrastructure, not just from its own products.” He highlighted Amazon Web Services (AWS) as an example of how owning infrastructure can be more profitable than merely selling items. By having control over its warehouses, logistics, cloud services, and marketplaces, Amazon established a solid competitive advantage.

He argued that creating a strong infrastructure provides significant benefits, such as reduced costs, quicker innovation, and increased switching costs once institutions adopt these systems. “This vertical integration is rare in financial services,” he noted, emphasizing how most companies specialize in just one layer or rely on partnerships, which can lead to complications and delays during system failures.

According to Claver, the ultimate objective resembles a “winner-takes-all” scenario, where larger networks become increasingly valuable due to network effects, rendering switching costs prohibitive once workflows are ingrained.

Claver detailed how Ripple’s acquisitions in 2025 align with what he believes to be the essential components of an institutional financial platform. He mentioned key elements such as custody and clearing for assets, global 24/7 payment systems, treasury management for corporations, and a stablecoin infrastructure for efficient settlements.

“Ripple has successfully built these layers through a combination of earlier acquisitions and significant deals in 2025, leading to a comprehensive institutional product named ‘Ripple 1’,” he remarked.

Key Acquisitions Shaping Ripple’s Strategy

One of the standout transactions of 2025 was Ripple’s $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road in April, which has since been rebranded as “Ripple Prime.” Claver described prime brokerage services as the “plumbing” necessary for facilitating large-scale trading and settlement.

“Prime brokers provide the essential behind-the-scenes services that make institutional trading feasible,” he stated. This includes handling the clearing processes and ensuring that trades settle properly between counterparties while securely holding assets. Hidden Road currently serves over 300 institutional clients and cleared more than $3 trillion in 2024, with its business reportedly growing threefold since the acquisition announcement.

Another significant acquisition was Rail, purchased for approximately $200 million in August 2025. This stablecoin payments platform operates continuously, easing the burden on enterprises to hold cryptocurrencies directly. Claver forecasted that Rail would process over 10% of a $36 billion global B2B stablecoin payments market in 2025.

Additionally, Ripple acquired GTreasury for $1 billion, announced in October 2025 and finalized in December. Claver described GTreasury as treasury software utilized by large corporations that manages $12.5 trillion in annual payment volume. This acquisition provides Ripple access to CFOs and treasurers through trusted software already embedded in corporate finance processes.

Lastly, Ripple announced the acquisition of Palisade in November 2025, although the terms were not disclosed. This acquisition adds a “hot wallet” layer, offering operational wallet-as-a-service infrastructure for high-frequency transaction needs, complementing other deeper custody solutions.

As of now, XRP is trading at $2.10.

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