Ripple Expands Digital Asset Custody to Africa with Absa Partnership

Ripple Labs has partnered with Absa Bank, one of Africa’s biggest and most trusted financial institutions, to launch a new digital asset custody service in South Africa. The move shows the continent’s growing interest in blockchain technology and Ripple’s commitment to building a stronger presence in Africa.

Bringing Secure Crypto Services to Financial Institutions 

With this partnership, Absa Bank will use Ripple’s secure and scalable custody technology to store digital assets safely. The goal is to give institutional clients a trusted and compliant way to hold digital currencies as real asset tokenization (RWA) and global crypto adoption continue to grow.

Absa is now the first major African bank to adopt Ripple’s digital asset custody solution. In a recent statement, Reece Merrick, Ripple’s Regional Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa, said the partnership reflects Ripple’s commitment to supporting African banks. He added that the company aims to help them adopt blockchain technology safely and responsibly.

Absa’s leadership added that this step helps the bank meet the changing needs of its customers. It also ensures access to regulated and secure digital asset custody services as the financial world evolves.

Ripple’s Growing Global Network

This Absa partnership adds to Ripple’s expanding list of collaborations with top financial institutions worldwide. Recently, Ripple extended its Ripple USD (RLUSD) stablecoin to African markets through partnerships with Chipper Cash, VALR, and Yellow Card. These efforts aim to improve cross-border payments and increase access to digital assets across the continent.

Similarly, Ripple is partnering with major banks worldwide to boost the adoption of its crypto custody services. Recently, Spanish banking giant BBVA integrated Ripple’s custody solution to securely manage users’ Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and other tokenized assets.

The fintech company has also teamed up with HSBC and DBS to meet the growing demand for tokenization in the financial industry. 

Through these partnerships, Ripple is building a strong global network of banks and payment providers ready to support the next stage of digital finance. These strategic partnerships are also helping bridge the gap between traditional banking and decentralized finance (DeFi).

Market Impact and Investor Outlook

Following the Absa announcement, XRP’s price rose by over 1% in the past 24 hours, reaching $2.50, according to CoinMarketCap data. 

The token traded between $2.41 and $2.53, though total trading volume dropped by about 20%. Meanwhile, the digital token has been attracting major institutional investment, recording another week of strong inflows totaling $61.6 million.

While the price movement was modest, investors viewed the partnership as a positive sign of Ripple’s growing role in emerging markets. It also underlined its commitment to expanding blockchain services for financial institutions.