Ripple has entered into a partnership with South Africa’s Absa Bank to provide digital asset custody services for institutional clients. The collaboration will see Absa use Ripple’s custody technology to manage tokenised assets, including cryptocurrencies, as demand for secure storage solutions continues to grow across Africa’s financial sector.
Under the agreement, Absa becomes Ripple’s first major custody partner on the continent. The partnership marks an expansion of Ripple’s institutional custody network, which already spans Europe, the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. Ripple officials said the deal reflects increasing interest among African banks in regulated digital asset services as regional regulatory clarity develops.
Expanding blockchain adoption across Africa
Absa officials stated that the partnership aligns with the bank’s efforts to meet customer demand for compliant and secure digital asset solutions. They added that Ripple’s technology provides the security and operational standards required to support institutional adoption of blockchain-based financial services.
Representatives from Ripple noted that the African market is undergoing significant changes in how value is exchanged, and partnerships such as this one aim to enable banks to explore blockchain use cases responsibly. They said the collaboration demonstrates the company’s intention to build a stronger digital asset infrastructure across emerging markets.
Earlier this year, Ripple expanded its presence in Africa through collaborations with other regional payment providers, including Chipper Cash, which uses Ripple’s crypto-enabled payments technology. The firm also announced plans to introduce its US dollar-backed stablecoin, RLUSD, to support local financial ecosystems.
According to Ripple’s 2025 New Value Report, 64% of finance leaders in the Middle East and Africa identify faster settlement times as a key reason for incorporating blockchain-based currencies into cross-border payment systems. Ripple currently holds more than 60 regulatory licences and registrations globally, supporting its efforts to facilitate the storage and transfer of digital assets for financial institutions.
