Ripple expands BNY custody deal, brings C2FO trade finance to XRP Ledger

Ripple has expanded its partnership with BNY to support institutional custody of XRP and RLUSD while advancing tokenized trade finance on the XRP Ledger through a separate collaboration with working-capital platform C2FO.

According to an October 27 announcement, BNY now supports both digital assets through its Digital Asset Custody platform, allowing eligible institutional clients to hold, safeguard and transfer them. The companies are examining additional services involving stablecoin issuance, tokenized investment products and trade finance, although those arrangements remain under development.

In a separate announcement the same day, Ripple and C2FO outlined plans to use the XRP Ledger and RLUSD for financing and settlement tied to approved business invoices. The arrangement focuses on suppliers that currently wait 30, 60 or 90 days for payment, with a proposed settlement process that could deliver funds within seconds.

Ripple expands BNY custody services for XRP and RLUSD

The expanded agreement builds on BNY’s existing role as primary reserve custodian for Ripple’s dollar-backed RLUSD stablecoin and its custody relationship with Ripple Prime. Its Digital Asset Custody platform now supports the holding and transfer of XRP and RLUSD within the bank’s institutional servicing infrastructure.

Ripple President Monica Long said the company’s focus was moving beyond issuing assets on blockchain networks toward their use in financial transactions. 

“We’re moving past the initial issuance of assets onchain,” Long said, pointing to applications involving payments and collateral.

BNY intends to provide support for more tokenized assets and investment products issued on the XRP Ledger as institutional demand develops. The two companies are examining a service that would allow BNY clients to mint and redeem RLUSD directly through the bank, although they have not announced when that functionality will become available.

Carolyn Weinberg, BNY’s chief innovation and market transformation officer, said future financial infrastructure would connect “payments, liquidity, collateral and securities” through traditional systems and blockchain technology. The bank has not disclosed how many customers currently hold XRP or RLUSD through its custody platform.

C2FO brings invoice financing plans to XRP Ledger

The separate C2FO partnership focuses on financing approved receivables through the company’s new Instant Pay service. Suppliers would continue accessing early payments through C2FO’s existing marketplace, while participating capital providers would finance transactions settled using RLUSD on the XRP Ledger.

According to the announcement, businesses often wait several weeks after delivering goods or services before receiving payment. Even when a supplier secures early payment, transfers through conventional banking infrastructure can take several days to complete.

C2FO says its existing Early Pay programs have facilitated more than $250 billion in working capital through accelerated invoice payments. The figure describes its historical financing activity and does not represent transactions already processed through XRPL.

Ragui Selwanes, C2FO’s president and chief operating officer for the Americas, said the collaboration was intended to improve the financial infrastructure supporting its marketplace. He described the proposed financing model as a way to improve access to capital while preserving existing customer relationships.

Tokenized trade finance remains under development

Ripple and BNY are examining the use of tokenized trade finance assets, including receivables, to make financing opportunities available to institutional investors. Their proposed work with C2FO would represent approved payment claims digitally and explore how investors could finance those obligations.

Under the C2FO arrangement, the original invoice terms and payment due dates would remain unchanged. Participating financing providers would supply early funding, while RLUSD would serve as the settlement asset, allowing suppliers to receive their payments without waiting for conventional bank transfers.

RippleX Senior Vice President Markus Infanger described working capital as an application where blockchain could improve established financial services. He cited the XRP Ledger’s settlement speed and transaction costs, alongside RLUSD’s role in transferring dollar-denominated value.

The companies have not disclosed the value of financing committed to Instant Pay or confirmed a completed production transaction using the new arrangement. C2FO is accepting expressions of interest through a waitlist, while the wider BNY trade-finance initiative remains subject to client requirements.

Ripple builds on institutional RLUSD partnerships

The announcements follow several institutional integrations involving Ripple’s stablecoin. On October 12, Standard Chartered introduced institutional RLUSD custody through its Dubai International Financial Centre branch, with a separate collateral arrangement involving LMAX Group still under development.

Three days later, Ripple signed a Cross River agreement to connect RLUSD with banking services covering domestic transfers and cross-border payments. As crypto.news previously reported, that integration is designed to connect stablecoin transactions with existing banking infrastructure through Cross River’s operating system.

BNY has separately supported tokenized investment products. The bank remains custodian of assets held by Aviva Investors’ Sterling Liquidity Fund, which recently introduced tokenized fund shares on the XRP Ledger.

Ripple’s October 27 announcements place RLUSD’s market capitalization at approximately $2.5 billion, with more than $1 billion issued on XRPL, according to the C2FO release. The companies state that the ledger settles transactions in approximately three to five seconds, although the proposed invoice-financing service has not disclosed operational transaction volumes.