5 mins read
Dateline: DriveWealth, partnership, 14 October 2026
DriveWealth, the brokerage-as-a-service platform behind investing apps at more than 100 partners, has partnered with Ripple to bring stablecoin settlement, cross-border payments and digital asset custody into its infrastructure, starting in Europe, according to a joint release dated 14 October 2026. The release, Fintechbits notes, gives no volumes, fees or launch dates for any of the four DriveWealth workstreams, and describes the equity-financing piece with Ripple Prime only as an area where the two are exploring opportunities. Settlement will use Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin on the XRP Ledger.
What DriveWealth is building with Ripple
The release splits the work into four parts. DriveWealth is integrating Ripple’s stablecoin infrastructure, including mint and burn capabilities for RLUSD on the XRP Ledger, to support settlement in Europe, with plans to extend it to the US. It is adding Ripple Payments so partners abroad can send money in. It is working with Ripple on digital asset custody in Europe. The fourth piece, equity financing through Ripple Prime, is still at the exploring stage, built around Ripple Prime’s Delta One business.
For clients, the change is in funding. They will be able to fund and manage collateral accounts with stablecoins that convert to cash in near real time, instead of waiting on a bank wire. The company is also moving its treasury and custody infrastructure onto Ripple’s rails to give clients a single view of dollars, stablecoins and crypto.
The funding gap DriveWealth wants to close
The platform already offers 24/5 trading. Its chief executive, Naureen Hassan, frames the deal as closing the gap between that and the money behind it: “We’ve already enabled 24/5 trading; now we need the funding to match, so clients can move with the markets instead of waiting for them.”
US equities settle on a T+1 basis, but an international fintech funding its brokerage account still plans around wire cut-offs and weekend closures. DriveWealth sells access to US markets to fintechs and wallets around the world, and for those partners the wire window means prefunding and cash sitting idle. Ripple’s Jack McDonald, SVP of stablecoins, says the company “came to Ripple with a specific challenge around cross-border settlement.”
Ripple has been busy on the institutional side. Fintechbits covered Ripple Prime’s prime brokerage deal with Brevan Howard, and Alpaca, a rival brokerage API provider, has been signing deals of its own, including an agreement with IDX.
Fintechbits analysis
Fintechbits analysis
Why DriveWealth starting in Europe matters
The choice of Europe says more than the rest of the release. The affiliate UAB DriveWealth Europe is, according to the company’s disclosures, MiFID II licensed for securities trading and custody across the European Economic Area, so Europe is where the group already has a regulated entity that can hold assets and accept stablecoin funding under one roof. The US leg, by contrast, is described only as a plan.
This is a plumbing story, and that is to its credit. Stablecoin funding that converts to cash quickly could cut how much capital partners park in advance, which is a cost every brokerage-as-a-service client pays. If it works, it makes a better case for stablecoins than most consumer launches have.
Too much of it is still conditional. Of the four workstreams, only settlement and payments read as integrations in progress. Custody is “working with,” and equity financing is “exploring.” The release names no partner already using the stablecoin route and no settlement volume. Until a client and a number appear, this reads as a statement of direction from two firms that both gain from announcing it.
Frequently asked questions
What is the DriveWealth and Ripple partnership?
DriveWealth is integrating Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin, Ripple Payments and custody support into its brokerage infrastructure. The aim is to let partners fund accounts with stablecoins that convert to cash in near real time rather than waiting on bank wires.
Where will DriveWealth use RLUSD first?
Stablecoin settlement and custody start in Europe, according to the release, with plans to expand settlement to the US. The company’s European affiliate holds a MiFID II licence for trading and custody across the EEA.
What does the release leave out?
Fintechbits notes that the release gives no volumes, fees or launch dates for any of the four workstreams. The equity-financing link with Ripple Prime is described only as an area the companies are exploring.
What to Watch Next
DriveWealth and Ripple will discuss the partnership in a fireside chat at Ripple Swell in New York on 28 October 2026. The useful test is whether they name a live DriveWealth partner funding accounts in RLUSD, a settlement volume, or a date for the US leg.
Why this matters
The release, Fintechbits notes, gives no volumes, fees or launch dates for any of DriveWealth’s four Ripple workstreams, and equity financing is only being explored. The substance is a plan to let more than 100 brokerage partners fund accounts with RLUSD that converts to cash in near real time, starting in Europe under DriveWealth’s MiFID II licence. If it works, partners hold less idle cash. Until a live client and a volume appear, it remains a statement of intent.
Primary sources
businesswire.com | PRESS RELEASE | https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261014151281/en/DriveWealth-and-Ripple-Partner-to-Bring-Institutional-Digital-Asset-Infrastructure-to-Global-Investing
legal.drivewealth.com | COMPANY WEBSITE | https://legal.drivewealth.com
