Ripple Adds to Crypto Custody Offering with Acquisition

Blockchain and crypto payment solution provider Ripple has announced the acquisition of Standard Custody and Trust Company, a New York-regulated platform for digital assets. Terms of the deal were not disclosed although the main aim of the deal is to allow Ripple to obtain another regulatory licence.

Ripple claims that the increase in institutional adoption of crypto and blockchain is a result of more mature and highly secure products in the market that are fully regulated and compliant. With this acquisition, Standard Custody’s limited purpose trust charter and its money transmitter licenses will contribute to Ripple’s growing portfolio of regulatory licenses, the firm says.

It adds that Ripple and its subsidiaries collectively hold a New York BitLicense, nearly 40 money transmitter licenses across the US, a Major Payment Institution License from the Monetary Authority of Singapore, and a Virtual Asset Service Provider registration with the Central Bank of Ireland.

“Ripple and Standard Custody are dedicated to enabling enterprises to reap the benefits of blockchain across a host of financial use cases building institutional-grade solutions to tokenize, store, move, and exchange value,” says Monica Long, president of Ripple. “By expanding our licenses portfolio and making smart acquisitions, Ripple is well-positioned to take advantage of the current market opportunities and further strengthen our crypto infrastructure solutions. We will continue to leverage our strong financial standing to expand our product offerings, support new initiatives on the product roadmap and serve a broader segment of customers.”

Ripple first moved into the digital assets custody space with the purchase of Metaco in May 2023.