coincodex.com
As Ripple is strengthening its presence across the globe, a new partner has joined its growing payments network. South Korea’s Jeonbuk Bank is the latest regional lender to embrace Ripple Payments, with the vision of making cross-border payments faster and easier. The new service will reportedly focus on businesses such as importers, exporters, startups, and online creators.
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
“This partnership with Jeonbuk Bank reflects the growing momentum we are seeing across Korea's institutional financial sector,” stated Fiona Murray, Managing Director, Asia Pacific at Ripple. Murray added,
“Regional banks play a vital role in the real economy. As the first regional bank in Korea to deploy Ripple Payments, Jeonbuk Bank is extending near real-time cross-border settlement directly to the businesses it serves, and this is a meaningful step for Korea's broader financial ecosystem."
Could Ripple Payments replace SWIFT?
Interestingly, Jeonbuk Bank’s decision to choose Ripple for cross-border payments has raised a critical question: Can a blockchain-based payments network replace traditional platforms like SWIFT. Currently, most traditional financial institutions rely on SWIFT for cross-border transactions, which may take up to five days. This slow and complicated process is now being replaced by blockchain-based payment systems like Ripple Payments, which offer faster global transactions. These platforms allow payments in seconds and will be available 24/7.
However, Jeonbuk Bank hasn’t confirmed whether it will completely replace SWIFT with Ripple. It is still unclear whether the bank will stop using SWIFT or use Ripple Payments alongside existing systems. As of now, Jeonbuk Bank considers the partnership a better alternative to the now-available slower systems.
Will Jeonbuk Bank use $XRP or $RLUSD?
Despite this move, the bank hasn’t made it clear whether it will use $XRP or the $RLUSD stablecoin for cross-border payments. The institution has also not confirmed it will buy, hold, or transfer the $XRP token.
Based on the market and regulatory requirements, Ripple can use different payment methods, including traditional fiat currencies, stablecoins, or cryptocurrencies. But in the Jeonbuk Bank partnership, neither the bank nor the payments platform has revealed which option will be leveraged.
For now, the deal could be viewed as Ripple Payments adoption rather than a confirmed $XRP or $RLUSD use case. When more details are revealed by the platforms, it could be confirmed if the bank plans to embrace $XRP or $RLUSD for its global payments network.