Chinese Regulators, Banks Set to Test Ripple’s Settlement Solution

Chinese regulators, banks, and payment providers ‎are reportedly set to carry out a test of ‎Ripple’s settlement solution, xCurrent, ‎in a bid to improve ‎‎payment infrastructure and ‎enable financial institutions to instantly ‎settle cross-border payments with ‎end-to-end tracking.‎

A recent statement by Ripple reflects its plans to expand in China by the end of ‎the year. ‎The company has been carrying out tests related to payment transactions and ‎settlements using its blockchain-powered solutions.

“This year you will see more announcements coming in on China, in terms of ‎educating and differentiating us from some of the other cryptocurrencies that are out ‎there,” Ripple’s head of government and regulatory relations for Asia Pacific Sagar Sarbhai ‎said. “As we speak, our team is strategizing about entering the market, but it’s still ‎very early days.”

“We’re trying to get some regulatory clarity, we’ve started ‎engaging informally with banks, FIs and payment providers, speaking to regulators ‎and government bodies, trying to educate on what Ripple is and what our vision is,” he added.‎

Ripple already has live clients in a number of countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including Japan, India, and Thailand. Last month, it has also announced a partnership with Chinese ‎payment provider LianLian International to implement its ‎blockchain solution, xCurrent, to materialize cross-border ‎payments in and out of China.‎

However, China is strict in terms of regulations and recently issued a ban on all activities involving cryptocurrencies. After clamping down on the domestic trading of virtual ‎coins, the Chinese government now looks to close the few remaining ‎loopholes in order to entirely restrict its citizens from ‎trading ‎cryptocurrencies or participating in ICOs held ‎abroad.‎

Although Ripple is regularly grouped together with other cryptocurrencies, its purpose is different ‎as it also operates a ‎decentralized payment settlement solution for banks and financial institutions that is fast and ‎scalable.‎

‎“Built for enterprise use, XRP offers banks and payment providers a reliable, on ‎demand option to source liquidity for cross-border payments,” the firm often describes its offering.