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The Saudi central bank is set to carry out a test of Ripple’s settlement solution, xCurrent, ‎in a bid to improve ‎payments infrastructure and ‎enables KSA’s banks to instantly settle cross-border payments with ‎end-to-end tracking.

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The deal is another boost for Ripple’s expansion in the region, after it has signed foreign exchange giant UAE Exchange last week to use its blockchain technology to power real-time ‎international payments. However, today’s agreement with the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) means things are shifting into a higher gear. ‎

SAMA will also provide interested Saudi banks with program management and training.

Ripple’s cryptocurrency, XRP, is not a part of this deal. ‎The cryptocurrency has already failed to react to the growing acceptance of products developed by the California-based blockchain specialist.

This ground-breaking pilot program marks an important moment for both ‎blockchain and remittance communities in the middle east. Saudi Arabia is ranked as the second top remittance sending country in ‎a global scale, counting above $36.9 billion– based on the 2016 World Bank ‎migration and remittances factbook, which looks at remittance outflows.

Dilip Rao, the global head of infrastructure innovation at Ripple, commented: ‎“Central banks around the world are leaning into blockchain technology in ‎recognition of how it can transform cross-border payments, resulting in lower ‎barriers to trade and commerce for both corporates and consumers.”

He added: ‎“SAMA is leading the charge as the first central bank to provide resources to ‎domestic banks that want to enable instant payments using Ripple’s innovative ‎blockchain solution.”‎

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