Jeonbuk Bank Makes Landmark Move as First Regional Korean Bank to Adopt Ripple Payments

Jeonbuk Bank, a major regional bank in South Korea, has adopted Ripple Payments for cross-border remittances, becoming the first regional bank in Korea to use the payment solution.

Ripple announced the partnership in a recent press release, confirming that Jeonbuk Bank will use Ripple Payments to help businesses send money across borders more quickly.

Jeonbuk Bank to Leverage Ripple Payments for Faster Settlements

The development will allow the bank to provide near-real-time settlement to customers who have traditionally depended on international transfers that can take several days.

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

Notably, traditional bank transfers often pass through several intermediary banks through the SWIFT network before reaching their destination. 

This process can take days to complete. Interestingly, Ripple Payments can settle transactions in seconds to minutes and runs 24/7. This gives Jeonbuk Bank a faster option for its business customers.

The bank plans to use the service for customers such as import-export companies, IT startups, and online content creators. Faster settlement could also help these businesses manage international payments with less delay and potentially lower costs.

Ripple Deepens Its Presence in Korea

Fiona Murray, Managing Director, Asia Pacific at Ripple, said the partnership shows the growing interest in digital asset infrastructure among Korean financial institutions. 

She also highlighted Ripple’s approach to working with financial institutions. Specifically, the company provides services across payments, custody, treasury, and wallet infrastructure, which allow institutions to choose solutions based on their individual needs and their progress in adopting digital assets.

Park Choon-won, President of JB Jeonbuk Bank, said the partnership will help the bank move beyond its traditional role as a regional lender.

According to him, the bank wants to build a stronger position in digital finance and use the partnership as a new source of growth while continuing to introduce new technology.

The latest deal also adds to Ripple’s growing list of partnerships in Korea. In 2026, Ripple partnered with Kyobo Life Insurance, Korea’s largest life insurer, to explore on-chain government bond settlement. 

Ripple also formed a partnership with Kbank, Korea’s first internet-only bank, to provide institutional wallet-as-a-service infrastructure through Ripple Custody.

Ripple Payments Continues to Grow

The Jeonbuk Bank partnership comes as Ripple continues to expand its international payment network. As of 2026, more than 300 financial institutions across 55+ countries connect to RippleNet, while the network supports more than 70 active corridors.

The service operates in markets including Australia, Brazil, Dubai, Mexico, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United States.

Several banks and financial institutions have also adopted Ripple’s payment infrastructure. For instance, AMINA Bank in Switzerland became the first European bank to adopt Ripple Payments in December 2025, using it to support near-real-time cross-border transfers for crypto-focused clients.

In Japan, SBI Remit and SBI Holdings have used Ripple’s ODL infrastructure since around 2017. Their use expanded through the Japan–Philippines corridor in 2021, followed by expansion into Vietnam and Indonesia in 2023. Meanwhile, Travelex Bank became the first Latin American bank to use ODL in August 2022.

Ripple’s broader network also includes institutions such as Santander, MUFG, Axis Bank, YES Bank, SEB, Akbank, UnionBank, BMO, U.S. Bank, Cross River Bank, and CBW Bank. Payment companies including Tranglo and LianLian have also worked with Ripple’s infrastructure.

However, these institutions do not all use Ripple in the same way. Some rely on RippleNet mainly for payment messaging, while a smaller group uses ODL, which can leverage XRP liquidity, or the newer Ripple Payments solution.