Ripple has teamed up with JB Jeonbuk Bank, making it the first regional bank in Korea to use Ripple Payments for cross-border remittances. The move targets business customers who rely on international transactions. Instead of relying on traditional transfers that take days, Jeonbuk Bank will switch to Ripple Payments, which promises near real-time settlement, operating 24/7.
The companies announced the deal in Seoul on August 18, 2026. This adds Jeonbuk Bank to Ripple’s growing list of Korean financial institutions joining forces with the company this year. The bank plans to roll out the technology for a range of global customers, like import-export firms, IT startups, and online content creators.
According to Ripple, the system settles payments in seconds to minutes, offering a much faster and more transparent alternative to the old way of transferring money across borders.
Jeonbuk Bank Moves to Near Real-Time Cross-Border Payments
Normally, international transfers involve several intermediary banks working through the SWIFT network, sometimes taking days to finish a payment. Ripple says this new deal lets Jeonbuk Bank skip the slow process and settle transactions in near real-time.
The bank’s service will run non-stop, so businesses can send and receive payments anytime, not just during standard banking hours. Ripple says this change will make life easier for Jeonbuk Bank’s global business clients by offering a remittance service that’s faster, clearer, and more cost-effective.
Jeonbuk Bank already serves businesses with overseas payment needs like import-export companies, tech startups, and online creators. For these clients, payments clearing in seconds or minutes could completely change how they handle cross-border transactions.
The deal also signals a bigger shift for Jeonbuk Bank as it expands beyond its regional roots. Park Choon-won, President of JB Jeonbuk Bank, said they want to go beyond being just a regional bank and become a digital finance leader that measures up to global standards. He called this partnership a new engine for growth and a way to drive innovation in the financial industry.
Ripple Expands Its Korean Financial Partnerships
This is Ripple’s third partnership this year, following agreements with Kyobo Life Insurance and KBank. Each deal handles a different angle in financial infrastructure, highlighting how Ripple is collaborating with Korean institutions all over the digital finance landscape.
Ripple says Kyobo Life Insurance, Korea’s largest life insurer, is working with them to develop on-chain government bond settlement. Kbank, which Ripple calls the country’s first internet-only bank, is rolling out institutional wallet-as-a-service tech through Ripple Custody.
Each of these partnerships has its own focus: Jeonbuk Bank is all about payments, Kbank is working on wallet infrastructure, and Kyobo Life Insurance is looking at on-chain bond settlement. Ripple says this lineup shows how it’s building infrastructure for custody, payments, treasury, and wallet management for financial institutions.
Fiona Murray, who is Managing Director of Asia Pacific at Ripple, said the Jeonbuk Bank partnership shows how Korea’s institutional finance sector is gaining momentum. She says more financial institutions are building their digital asset skills and are on the lookout for tech partners who can stick with them for the long term.
Murray also pointed out how important regional banks are for the real economy. Ripple sees Jeonbuk Bank’s move as a step toward bringing near-real-time cross-border settlement to businesses and strengthening Korea’s wider financial network.
Jeonbuk Bank is the first regional bank in Korea to deploy Ripple Payments, replacing multi-day SWIFT transfers with near real-time, 24/7 cross-border settlement for its business customers. Our third Korean partnership this year, after Kyobo Life Insurance and Kbank, partnering…
— Ripple (@Ripple) AUGUST 18, 2026
A Broader Digital Finance Push
Ripple is signing up Korean partners as it aims to position itself as an all-in-one platform linking traditional and digital finance. The company, founded in 2012, offers blockchain-driven solutions for payments, custody, liquidity, and treasury management.
Ripple presents its offerings as tools for moving, storing, exchanging, and managing value. Its stablecoin, RLUSD, and the cryptocurrency XRP are at the core of its tech offering. Ripple has not said whether transfers will settle in XRP, its RLUSD stablecoin, another digital asset, or ordinary fiat rails. There is a practical reason banks tend to avoid XRP here.
Institutions running compliance-heavy remittance pilots want predictable settlement value, and a token that can move several percent mid-transaction is a problem no bank wants to explain to a regulator. Ripple’s other 2026 bank deals have gone the same route.
The door is not fully closed, though. If a partner later switches on Ripple’s On-Demand Liquidity service, where XRP bridges two currencies, each transaction would generate real XRP buying and selling.
For now, Jeonbuk Bank’s main focus is on cross-border payments. By adopting Ripple Payments, it wants to give business clients faster, 24/7 settlement, moving money in seconds instead of days.
The deal adds another regional bank to Ripple’s Korean network, alongside Kyobo Life Insurance and Kbank, and extends the company’s presence across payments, custody, and on-chain settlement in the country.
