Ripple Brings Near Real Time Settlement To South Korean Businesses

Kbank Pilots Blockchain Remittances With Ripple

Ripple has signed a strategic partnership with Kbank, South Korea's first internet-only bank, to test blockchain-based cross-border remittances. Kbank CEO Choi Woo-hyung and Ripple Asia Pacific Head Fiona Murray finalised the agreement in Seoul. The deal marks a significant step in Ripple's push to modernise international payments across the region.

The collaboration, now in its second proof-of-concept phase, is evaluating the stability, speed, cost, and transparency of blockchain-based transfers to markets including the United Arab Emirates and Thailand. These corridors were chosen in part because traditional SWIFT-based transfers on those routes involve multiple intermediary banks, each adding fees and processing delays.

Phase I tested app-based remittance structures, while the current Phase II is focused on deep system-level integration, examining direct on-chain transfers to markets including the UAE and Thailand. Palisade, a software-as-a-service wallet from Ripple, is being implemented in the second phase. Notably, the transactions settle in stablecoins rather than $XRP directly, consistent with how other major Ripple bank deals in 2026, including Deutsche Bank, Convera, and Kyobo Life, have been structured.

Ripple Builds Broader Korea Footprint

The Kbank deal is part of a wider push by Ripple into South Korea's financial sector. In April 2026, Ripple also partnered with Kyobo Life Insurance to explore tokenized government bonds through Ripple Custody, and has conducted joint research with SBI Ripple Asia and DSRV on Japan-South Korea payment corridors.

The timing aligns with a broader regulatory shift in South Korea. The country is finalising its Digital Asset Basic Act, which will establish formal rules around custody, tokenized assets, and cross-border digital asset activity, and major financial institutions are now moving to build blockchain and stablecoin infrastructure ahead of those new rules.

Kbank is South Korea's first internet-only lender and Upbit's exclusive banking partner. Its Ripple pilot tests whether bank-side crypto infrastructure can move from exchange access toward ordinary cross-border payments while the product design and rulebook remain unfinished.

The Kbank-Ripple pilot is still in its testing phase. No live remittance service has launched yet.

Sources:
CoinDesk: South Korea's KBank Tests International Blockchain Transfers With Ripple
Crypto Times: KBank and Ripple Launch Blockchain Remittance Pilot in South Korea
Genfinity: KBank Partners With Ripple to Pilot Onchain Cross-Border Remittances