Ripple acquires stake in Tranglo to up its game in Asian markets

Wholesale cross-border payments may be dominated by the likes of interbank consortium SWIFT, but upstart, non-bank payments firm Ripple is deploying its cryptocurrency technology to undercut the incumbent.

In such, Ripple has announced the acquisition of a 40% stake in Kuala Lumpur based cross-border payment processing company, Tranglo. According to the press note, this partnership would allow Ripple ‘to meet growing customer demand in the region and expand the reach of On-Demand Liquidity (ODL), which uses the digital asset XRP to send money instantly and reduce working capital needs’.

Last year, Siam Commercial Bank had announced cross-border payments which were backed by Ripple. In South Asian markets, EMQ had launched cross-border services while Wallex partnered with Volpay.

The press note also emphasised that Tranglo will play a crucial role in supporting existing corridors such as the Philippines, and introducing new ODL corridors within its current network and as the company broadens its ODL base in the region. As part of the deal, ‘Tranglo will continue to provide and expand its current payment services to make cross-border transactions faster, cheaper and more secure for its customers’.

“By partnering closely with Ripple and introducing On-Demand Liquidity to new markets, we aim to further that ambition to provide accessible and equitable financial services to the masses.” said Jacky Lee, Chief Executive Officer at Tranglo.

The press note stressed the fact that ‘Southeast Asia’s payments landscape is highly fragmented’ and each country has its own unique process and payments infrastructure and lack of a standard integration for regional cross-border payments currently requires expensive workarounds.

Ripple is based out of the United States and has offices in the US, UK, India, Brazil, Iceland, UAE and Singapore. According to the company’s website, it has hundreds of clients in over 55 nations including some prominent clients such as American Express, Santander, SBI remit, Instarem, Banco Rendimento, Nium, Standard Chartered etc. The company is trying to set its foot in a space which is already dominated by Belgium headquartered interbank payments consortium SWIFT.