Ripple is expanding its institutional custodial infrastructure into Africa through a new partnership with Absa Bank, one of South Africa’s largest financial institutions.
The deal makes Absa Ripple its first major custody customer on the African continent and reflects the growing interest from institutional investors in tokenized assets across emerging markets.
According to the release, Absa will utilize Ripple’s digital asset custody technology to store and manage cryptocurrencies and tokenized assets for its customers. This integration will enable banks to provide a secure and compliant custody infrastructure as regulations around digital assets in Africa continue to gain clarity.
The move builds on Ripple’s broader strategy to position itself as a backend provider of blockchain-based infrastructure for regulated institutions. The company’s storage services, launched earlier this year, are already available to customers in Europe, Asia and Latin America.
This partnership builds on Ripple’s recent expansion across Africa. Earlier this year, the company announced a partnership with Chipper Cash to power cryptocurrency-enabled payments and confirmed that RLUSD, a USD-backed stablecoin, will be deployed in African markets.
According to Ripple’s 2025 New Value Report, 64% of financial leaders in the Middle East and Africa believe faster payments and lower transaction costs are the main reasons for integrating blockchain-based currencies into payment flows.
Ripple holds more than 60 regulatory licenses and registrations around the world, giving it a compliance advantage in jurisdictions where banks remain cautious about their digital asset exposure.
If the Absa deal goes ahead, South Africa will become one of the few African markets to offer crypto custody services backed by major banks.
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