Ripple is making a $150 million strategic investment in LMAX Group, a global institutional exchange operator, and has signed a partnership centred on its stablecoin Ripple USD (RLUSD), The Block reported on Wednesday.

Under the multi-year agreement, RLUSD is expected to become a core collateral asset across LMAX’s global institutional trading infrastructure. Banks, brokers and asset managers will be able to use RLUSD for margin and settlement in spot cryptocurrency, perpetual futures, contracts for difference (CFDs) and some fiat currency trades.

LMAX plans to offer RLUSD as a separate wallet through its institutional custody service, LMAX Custody, to make it easier to move collateral between assets.

LMAX CEO David Mercer said the partnership reflects growing regulatory clarity in global markets including the United States, and the role stablecoins can play in institutional market structure.

Jack McDonald, head of Ripple’s stablecoin unit, said blockchain-based infrastructure is becoming central to modernising traditional financial markets. He said the collaboration with LMAX will accelerate RLUSD adoption through a regulated exchange network.

The companies will also integrate Ripple’s prime brokerage service, Ripple Prime, with LMAX Digital. This will give Ripple Prime clients access to LMAX Digital’s price discovery functions and liquidity.