DTCC's "$40 trillion in transactions on the XRPL" is a misinterpretation: Ripple Prime only has broker execution eligibility

March 5 News: Recently, the crypto community has widely circulated the claim that “DTCC’s $4 trillion in annual transactions will migrate to the XRP Ledger (XRPL).” However, the latest information shows that this view is based on a misinterpretation of regulatory documents and does not mean that the U.S. securities settlement system is using XRPL for clearing.

The controversy originated when Ripple subsidiary Ripple Prime (formerly Hidden Road Partners CIV) appeared in the Market Participant Identifier (MPID) directory of the National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC). The directory shows its first trading date as March 2 and designates it as an executing broker with the code “HRFI,” with Pershing LLC as the clearing broker.

Some XRP community members speculate that transaction flows within the DTCC system may begin migrating to XRPL based on this. However, the reality is different. The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) indeed holds about $100 trillion in assets and processes approximately $40 trillion in transactions annually, but Ripple Prime’s appearance in the directory only indicates it has qualified as an executing broker and can clear through Pershing.

Under the current process, Ripple Prime or Hidden Road is responsible for executing OTC trades, while the clearing and settlement of these trades are still handled by Pershing via the NSCC system. XRPL is not involved in the settlement process of these transactions, nor are any DTCC transactions recorded on the blockchain.

The scope of this authorization is also very limited. The NSCC document shows that Ripple Prime is only permitted to handle eligible OTC products and has not been granted clearing rights for standard corporate bonds, municipal bonds, or unit trusts. Similar broker onboarding processes are common in NSCC, with many firms completing such registrations each month.

The background of Ripple’s acquisition of Hidden Road has also been interpreted by some in the community as XRPL preparing to take on traditional financial transactions. In April 2025, Ripple announced it would acquire Hidden Road for $1.25 billion, mentioning in the statement that some post-trade activities might be migrated to XRPL in the future to improve efficiency and reduce costs. However, the announcement used future-oriented language (“will”) rather than indicating that such migration has already occurred.

The acquisition was completed in October 2025. Although Hidden Road was later renamed Ripple Prime and now has a regulatory framework to serve as an executing broker in the U.S. securities market, there has been no record of any DTCC transactions settled via XRPL to date.

Additionally, Hidden Road’s website still describes the company as an “institutional global credit network” providing brokerage, financing, and clearing services for traditional and digital assets. Mentions of XRPL are only found in Ripple’s acquisition press releases.

Industry experts note that whether Ripple will migrate post-trade data or some processes to XRPL in the future remains to be seen. Currently, the regulatory approval only means Ripple Prime is qualified to conduct brokerage activities in the U.S. securities market, not that the traditional financial settlement system has begun using XRPL.