Ripple M&A Target Hidden Road to Open New Office in Abu Dhabi Headed by James Stickland

Hidden Road, a prime broker that focuses on crypto and traditional assets, which recently agreed to be acquired by Ripple, is opening an office in Abu Dhabi, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.

The office will be led by James Stickland, a partner at the firm, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is private.

Hidden Road confirmed the plans.

The company has received in-principle approval (IPA) from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of ADGM, Hidden Road said in a press release shared with CoinDesk on Thursday.

A member of the Abu Dhabi royal family could potentially join the board of the company’s local entity when it receives final regulatory approval, one of the people said.

Once Hidden Road receives this final approval, it will be authorized to offer clearing and prime brokerage services to institutional investors in the UAE, the company said.

They are not the only firm making moves in the region. Circle, the issuer of the second-largest stablecoin, USDC, said it received in-principle regulatory approval from Abu Dhabi last month, paving the way for an expansion across the Middle East.

Prime brokers are an essential part of the plumbing of financial markets. They provide trading, financing and custody services to large institutions.

Stickland is the former CEO of Elwood Technologies and Elwood Asset Management, the crypto firm backed by billionaire hedge fund manager Alan Howard. He joined Hidden Road over a year ago, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Ripple agreed to buy multi-asset prime broker Hidden Road for $1.25 billion last month, marking one of the largest M&A deals in the digital asset industry to date.

The crypto company, headed by Brad Garlinghouse, said it will inject fresh capital into Hidden Road to expand its clearing, prime brokerage, and financing operations, aiming to make the firm the largest non-bank prime broker globally.

Hidden Road said last month that it had received FINRA approval to operate as a U.S. broker-dealer, enhancing its fixed income prime brokerage platform.

Read more: Hidden Road, Set to Be Acquired by Ripple, Wins U.S. Broker-Dealer License