On Tuesday, XRP witnessed a notable 4% price increase as Ripple announced new strategic partnerships in South Korea and Japan. The blockchain firm aims to strengthen crypto infrastructure to support institutional adoption in these regions.
This development follows a recent verdict in the ongoing US SEC vs. Ripple lawsuit, marking a significant moment for the company.
Major developments in Ripple’s expansion strategy
Ripple’s latest partnerships highlight its commitment to advancing the XRP Ledger (XRPL) ecosystem. The blockchain firm has focused on enhancing the XRPL’s programmability to support developers and foster growth within its ecosystem. These efforts are designed to attract more institutional participants to the XRP Ledger and drive broader adoption.
Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple’s CEO, emphasized the company’s intention to explore new growth avenues for its enterprise products, particularly those serving crypto-native users. The XRP community has long requested the XRPL’s programmability, and Ripple is now working to meet these demands.
Futureverse partnership to secure Ripple’s Crypto assets
Ripple partnered with Futureverse, an AI and metaverse technology company, in a significant move. Futureverse has already integrated Ripple’s XRPL NFT standard and uses XRP as the gas token on its Root Network. This collaboration further strengthens Ripple’s position in the NFT and metaverse sectors, with Futureverse utilizing XRP to ensure network liquidity and secure its assets through Ripple’s custody services.
Ripple has outlined that the XRPL is engineered to transfer value efficiently. It is backed by robust infrastructure, including its native decentralized exchange (DEX), automated market maker (AMM), escrow features, NFTs, and authorized trust lines. Through its decentralized amendment process, the firm is rolling out new features like Oracles, multi-purpose tokens, lending protocols, and decentralized identity solutions.
Additionally, Ripple is working on introducing extra programmability to the XRPL mainnet and the EVM sidechain. This expansion is expected to provide developers with the flexibility to build custom on-chain logic, enhancing the overall utility of the XRP Ledger.
XRPL’s growing influence in the academic sector
Ripple’s University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI) continues to expand, with South Korea’s Yonsei University recently joining as its 58th global partner. Ripple has committed $60 million to this initiative, underscoring its dedication to fostering blockchain education and research.
Ripple has also reiterated its plans to introduce smart contracts to the XRPL developer ecosystem by 2025. This development will be facilitated through the XRPL EVM sidechain, which is already in progress. The company will also explore the native capabilities of the XRPL Mainnet, further expanding its use cases.
XRP’s recent price performance reflects growing investor confidence following these announcements. The cryptocurrency has experienced a 41% surge over the past 60 days, significantly outperforming Bitcoin’s 9% gain in the same period. As of the latest update, XRP is trading at approximately $0.568.
These developments are crucial in Ripple’s ongoing efforts to enhance the XRPL ecosystem and drive adoption in key Asian markets. With the legal uncertainties in the US beginning to clear, Ripple’s focus on international partnerships and technological advancements appears poised to pay off in the coming months.