Ripple, an affiliate of XRP, the world's No. 3 by cryptocurrency market capitalization, is preparing a crypto custody (trust) business in Korea. Custody demand is expected to surge once corporations' crypto investments in Korea get underway in earnest starting next year.
According to the crypto industry on the 12th, Ripple appointed a head to oversee the Korean market earlier this month and is preparing a custody business in Korea. Because Ripple does not have a domestic virtual asset service provider (VASP) license granted by financial authorities to operate a crypto business in Korea, it plans to partner with domestic companies that have obtained a VASP and supply its solutions. Recently, Ripple also formed partnerships with domestic custody firm BDAX and Danal's blockchain subsidiary Danal Fintech.
Along with this, Ripple is also sponsoring the XRP and Web3 conference "XRP Seoul 2025," which will cover plans to expand the Ripple ecosystem, at COEX in Seoul on the 21st. In addition, at Korea Blockchain Week on the 25th, Ripple has planned an event where attendees can experience payments directly using Ripple's stablecoin (RLUSD) by applying RLUSD to an actual merchant payment process. The company said it will be the first case in Korea to prove the real-world usability of a stablecoin.
Custody services, or the crypto trust business, are service operations that store and manage customers' digital assets for a fee, similar to traditional banking. If investors hold crypto directly, there is a risk of theft or loss of the crypto wallet's private key, so this service keeps it safe. Overseas, major investment banks like Goldman Sachs and specialized trust firms provide custody services directly.
Most demand for custody services comes from corporate investors looking to manage large amounts of crypto. At present, even if general corporations, excluding nonprofit corporations, buy crypto such as bitcoin, corporate real-name accounts are blocked, leaving no way to redeem into won. However, starting next year, as the domestic corporate market opens to all corporations, companies preparing for the trust business expect a new market to open.
Ripple is strengthening and selling its custody solutions worldwide. Separate from XRP token sales, it is building a cash cow. Ripple says it provides bank-grade custody technology to the fintech and crypto industries. The solution follows security and compliance standards trusted by major banks and financial institutions worldwide, and, in connection with the XRP Ledger (XRPL), can tokenize real-world assets (RWA) and various assets, and efficiently handle the issuance, transfer, and transaction of digital assets.
Ripple Custody is showing sustained momentum, with new customer growth approaching 300% year over year. It provides solutions in financial markets including Switzerland, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Singapore, and Hong Kong. Ripple Custody currently supports services for global banks and financial institutions worldwide, as well as crypto companies, including Switzerland's BBVA, Societe Generale, DBS, Rulematch, Acurx, and Futureverse.