Ripple Custody enables Kyobo Life to settle bond transactions in near real-time
SEOUL, KOREA, 15 April 2026 — Ripple, the leading provider of blockchain-based enterprise solutions across traditional and digital finance, today announced a landmark strategic partnership with Kyobo Life Insurance, one of Korea’s largest and most established life insurers. This marks Ripple’s first collaboration with a leading insurance institution in Korea and represents a significant step in the development of institutional-grade digital asset infrastructure in the country — enabling tokenized government bond transactions through Ripple Custody within a regulated institutional environment. Ripple Custody is a bank-grade fully integrated digital asset custody platform purpose-built for regulated financial institutions that supports the secure transfer, settlement, and management of digital assets.
From left: Fiona Murray, Managing Director, Asia Pacific at Ripple, and Jin Ho Park, Senior Executive Vice President at Kyobo Life Insurance
Kyobo Life and Ripple will also assess the technical and regulatory feasibility of tokenized Treasury settlement in Korea’s financial ecosystem. The collaboration leverages Ripple Custody as the secure foundation for the holding, transfer, and settlement of tokenized assets – replacing fragmented, manual bond settlement processes with transparent, on-chain execution. Over time, this infrastructure can integrate with broader capabilities across payments, liquidity, and treasury management. This initiative provides a clear blueprint for how regulated financial institutions can adopt digital asset infrastructure — starting with custody and expanding into tokenization and on-chain settlement.
The partnership demonstrates how blockchain technology can fundamentally modernize government bond settlement in Korea. By enabling transactions to settle simultaneously, settlement cycles can move from the typical two-day settlement timeline to near real-time execution, reducing counterparty risk and improving capital efficiency. Ripple will also power Kyobo to explore stablecoin-based payment rails, enabling 24/7 transaction capability within a compliant, regulated framework. This forms part of Kyobo Life’s broader strategy to accelerate digital transformation and enhance operational efficiency through next-generation financial infrastructure.
Fiona Murray, Managing Director, Asia Pacific at Ripple said, “Korea's institutional financial market is at an inflection point, and we are privileged to be entering it alongside Kyobo Life Insurance—one of Korea's most respected financial institutions and the first major insurer in the country to take this step with us. This partnership is a signal to the broader market that institutional-grade digital asset infrastructure is no longer a future aspiration; it is available, proven, and ready to deploy in Korea today.
Ripple's commitment to Korea is long-term and strategic. We see this as the beginning of a broad and enduring partnership, not only with Kyobo, but with the Korean institutional financial market as a whole."
Jin Ho Park, Senior Executive Vice President at Kyobo Life Insurance said, “Our partnership with Ripple is not simply about digital assets — it’s about validating how traditional financial instruments can operate securely and efficiently on blockchain. We are proud to collaborate with Ripple to advance Korea’s financial market infrastructure and bring next-generation solutions to our customers.”
Korea has emerged as a leading market for regulated digital financial adoption since the government began licensing payment providers for remittance in 2017. This partnership builds on Ripple’s growing business momentum in Korea, and its commitment to enabling institutional-grade digital asset innovation within the market.