Japanese financial holding company SBI Group has recently undertaken a partnership with Ripple and SBI Ripple Asia to broaden the reach of ripple remittance technology to banks in South East Asia. The announcement disclosed the deployment of XRP as a means to facilitate fast and economical remittances, spanning various countries including Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines. It is worth noting that SBI Remit; a branch of SBI Group, has been employing Ripple’s payment services for international remittances since 2017.
As well as a beacon for rapid progress, the novelty of such utilization of crypto in such mainstream banking procedures isn’t void of scepticism. A key challenge that has sparked negative attention is the still common traditionalist apprehension towards cryptocurrency adoption. Results can only be determined with time, but it seems safe to say that the mmense benefits cannot be ignored. Furthermore, it is clear to see that partnerships with entities such as cross-border payment company Tranglo, play a significant role in facilitating such expansion efforts.
With increasing adoption of Ripple’s services in Japan, despite the ongoing legal issue in the United States, SBI Group’s initiative comes across as essentially beneficial. The company hopes that increasing usage of remittances to these countries’ bank accounts projects a possible boost in the adoption of their service across a broader user base. The remittance service offering is expected to be rolled out within this month, followed by an increase in volume of remittances, hence rendering this new financial partnership a significant milestone in the crypto space.
The partnership with Ripple is further evidence of blockchain’s potential to disrupt traditional banking systems. The fact that SBI Remit was the first in Japan to provide remittance services using XRP to crypto wallets in the Philippines certainly paints a promising picture for the benefits of such innovation. However, considering the legal challenges faced by Ripple in the United States, one can only speculate whether the positives of this partnership will outshine the negatives.
As the tech continues to evolve, the ground-breaking partnership between SBI Group, Ripple, and SBI Ripple Asia brings immense potential for growth of blockchain use cases in remittance services. It hints at cryptocurrency’s transcendence beyond simply an investment or speculative asset, shifting the paradigm towards real-world functional adoption. However, it is still crucial for individuals and organizations to make informed decisions and assess risks when adopting new payment technologies.
Times are changing and it’s intriguing to monitor the increasingly positive preconception of crypto amongst the wider public, coupled with continued apprehension. Despite this, the SBI Group’s announcement introduces an exciting turning point in the future of remittance and sets forth a positive example for forthcoming adoption and implementation efforts.
Source: Cointelegraph
