sandmark.com
Digital technology firm Ripple is seeking to acquire BC Payments Australia Pty Ltd which would give it a financial services licence in Australia for its payments product to institutions.
The proposed purchase is subject to finalization and would give Ripple the Australian Financial Services License (AFSL), allowing it to operate an end-to-end payments system, the company said in a statement. BC Payments is a unit of Banking Circle S.A., a European-based payments bank, and the deal is expected to close on 1 Apr, according to the statement.
Asia-Pacific scaling plan
Ripple already has a presence in Australia, providing cross-border remittance and liquidity services. The licence allows it to scale Ripple Payments through the Asia Pacific region.
Once the licence is granted, Ripple Payments can manage the full lifecycle of a transaction "from onboarding and compliance through funding, FX, liquidity management and final payout, while integrating both traditional banking rails and digital assets," the company said. Through the AFSL, Ripple gives businesses a single integration into its infrastructure, allowing customers to avoid having to manage multiple intermediaries for the local and overseas segments of a transaction.
Payments volume growth
Ripple, which was founded in 2012, said its Asia Pacific payments volume nearly doubled year-on-year in 2025. Its Australian customers include Hai Ha Money Transfer, Novatti Group, Stables, Caleb & Brown, Flash Payments and Independent Reserve. Its stablecoin, RLUSD and digital token XRP are used to underpin the solutions.