Ripple has been one of the most prominent and popular entities in the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry for a while now. However, while it has managed to acquire and pocket numerous banks and exchanges to push its services, its biggest deal has been with Japan’s SBI Holdings.
SBI Holdings is the largest known shareholder of Ripple and ever since Ripple joined hands with SBI, its growth in Asia has been exponential. Ripple needed the support of a large, financial services provider to integrate its services, especially from a promotional point of view.
With SBI as its cheerleader, Ripple has managed to partner with other exchanges and banks in Asia who have also become a part of RippleNet. Apart from connecting Ripple with other financial service providers, SBI has been also pushing the Money Tap settlement network, the implementation of RippleNet software that does not use XRP.
Apart from being in a symbiotic relationship with Ripple, SBI holdings shared in its March report news of it planning to occupy 50% of RippleNet, meaning, SBI might soon be transacting 50% of the volume, according to analysts. In fact, in its Investor Relations report, the company had provided statistics for its remittance business, noting Vietnam to be the biggest recipient of remittances from Japan, accounting for 31.3%.
Further, there have been speculations of a Ripple Corridor between the two countries, despite there being no official announcement yet. So, if the corridor is present, it must be put into great use as it has been the most active corridor for SBI.
As per the report, other countries in Asia accounted for a cumulative of 14.3%. Nearly half of the remittance market for SBI is made up of remittances sent within Asia. With its latest decision to buy a minor stake in B2C2 exchange based in London, SBI is now a part of a crypto-exchange that could be an exchange Ripple decides to partner with if it opens a corridor in the United Kingdom.
This could be a beneficial partnership for Ripple, especially since today, SBI is more than just a financial services provider. It is a financial giant of the traditional market that has successfully waded into the waters of the cryptocurrency industry.
