Ripple extends further in Middle East
Ripple has been quickly expanding its footprint in the Middle East. Earlier this month, it became official that the Qatar National Bank (QNB) plans to launch a remittance platform based on Ripple blockchain technology.
Ripple Labs has partnered with Al Ansari Exchange. The UAE-based foreign exchange and worldwide money transfer company joined RippleNet.
RippleNet Cloud is the blockchain specialist’s cloud-based financial network technology. Al Ansari Exchange will leverage the network to provide same-day remittances to Malaysia via money transfer technology company MoneyMatch.
The remittance service using RippleNet will initially support transactions in Malaysian Ringgit (MYR), but Al Ansari plans to add the Brunei dollar (BND) and the Australian dollar (AUD) in the near future as the venue looks to address demands for cross-border payments.
Rashid Al Ansari, Chief Executive Officer of Al Ansari Exchange, said: “Blockchain technology has paved the way for seamless, transparent and advanced methods to send remittances in real-time worldwide.
“Adopting this technology on the cloud via our partnership with Ripple and MoneyMatch is in line with our commitment to provide our customers with more flexible, faster, safer and more innovative money transfer solutions. Together, we are carving new benchmarks in the industry, with an end goal of redefining customer experience and taking our services to the next level internationally.”
RippleNet Cloud allows banks and financial institutions to move away from aging and expensive legacy on-premise infrastructure, and embrace the flexibility, speed and resilience of cloud computing without the burden of hardware management.
Adrian Yap, Chief Executive Officer of MoneyMatch, commented: “We are excited to be partnering with Al Ansari Exchange, and look forward to supporting them and powering their Malaysian Ringgit transactions to Malaysia. The synergies that this partnership will unlock is promising, and we look forward to a long and fruitful business relationship between both parties. We hope the Malaysians working in the UAE will also lend us their support and try the service out.”
Navin Gupta, Managing Director, South Asia and MENA, at Ripple, said: “Al Ansari is one of the largest and longest-standing exchanges in the region, focused on expanding their network and evolving their offerings to provide the best financial services to their customers. We view this partnership with MoneyMatch as a continuation of that ethos, and we’re excited to be partnering with them to improve cross-border payments in key remittance corridors with RippleNet Cloud.”
Ripple has been quickly expanding its footprint in the Middle East. Earlier this month, it became official that the Qatar National Bank (QNB) plans to launch a remittance platform based on Ripple blockchain technology.
In May, Oman’s second largest bank BankDhofar became the first bank in Omar to join Ripple’s global payments network. The purpose is to connect with India-based IndusInd Bank to drive real-time payments into India. This partnership will enable cross-border transactions made via the BankDhofar Mobile Banking App.
