[ad_1]
According to a Ripple executive, the distributed payment service provider has an eye on the expansion of operations in the Chinese market.
Jeremy Light, vice president of Ripple of the strategic accounts of the European Union, spoke with CNBC by telephone yesterday, during which time he confirmed the company's interest in expanding into China.
According to Light, Ripple is closely observing China as part of a continuous effort to simplify and accelerate international payments using distributed ledger technology (DLP). "China is definitely a country and a region of interest," he said.
In February of this year, Ripple began to make its way into the Chinese market by entering into a partnership with LianLian International, based in Hong Kong. The financial services company planned to use Ripple technology to facilitate faster and cheaper cross-border transactions to its customers in China, the United States and Europe.
Even with its latest partnership, however, the entry of Ripple into the Chinese market is likely to be an uphill climb. China is home to numerous fintech companies and there are several existing payment apps – such as Ant Financial's Alipay and Tencent's WeChat Pay – which already have a growing and loyal customer base among Chinese consumers. To compete realistically, Ripple will have to bring something extra to the table.
What does this mean for XRP?
Investors and enthusiasts waiting for the "moon" XRP not start planning their retirement yet. Any expansion in the Chinese market will see Ripple concentrate on expanding its network of financial and institutional clients rather than adopting the adoption of XRP.
Part of the reason is Ripple xCurrent's flagship solution, which is primarily designed for banks and other institutions – you know, those that could inject large amounts of money into the XRP market – do not actually use XRPs at all.
Ripple's xRapid platform – which uses XRP tokens – has garnered interest from money transfer firms like MoneyGram and Western Union, however, both implementations are still being tested.
Ripple's customer portfolio boasts over 100 banks and financial institutions, including big names such as Santander, Standard Chartered, UBS, UniCredit and others.
Another likely reason for not focusing on the adoption of XRP is the inhospitable climate of China in which cryptocurrencies are involved. Last September, the People's Bank of China (PBoC) banned ICOs and then doubled and banned the trading of domestic and foreign stock exchanges. The move led many China-based trades to move to more friendly positions and peaked in P2P trading as investors sought to circumvent the ban.
If Ripple is able to get a point of support in China, could it help to relax the country's position on cryptocurrencies? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Image courtesy of ShutterStock
