India’s Axis Bank has launched its instant, cross-border payments solution less than a year after announcing a collaboration with blockchain technology firm Ripple.
The bank announced news on Monday (Nov. 27) that its global payments service, which uses Ripple’s blockchain infrastructure, is now up and running. Retail customers can receive payments from the UAE’s RAKBANK using the platform, while corporate clients in India can receive payments from Singapore’s Standard Chartered Bank in real-time, Axis said.
“While there have been significant innovations in domestic payments, cross-border remittance has seen limited developments,” said Axis Bank President, Transaction Banking, Himadri Chatterjee, in a statement. “Using APIs and distributed ledger technology, there is an opportunity to radically change the way international payments are handled. We are excited with the potential the technology has to bring innovative services to the market and help us enhance value to our customers.”
In another statement, Standard Chartered Bank Global Head, Digitization and Client Access, Transaction Banking, Gautam Jain, said the blockchain-based solution can be especially valuable for corporate payments.
“The successful launch of our commercial cross-border payment service marks a significant milestone in the financial industry’s progress in applying distributed ledger technology for corporates,” Jain said. “We are incredibly proud to be leading the way in this area. This affirms our commitment to digitization and innovation as we continuously look at new ways to add value to our clients and their ecosystems; in this case, corporates trading between Singapore and India.”
Axis announced in January that it is collaborating with Ripple to develop a global instant payments solution for consumers and corporates. Their partnership followed another one between Axis and Earthport with a similar initiative to streamline cross-border payments.
Advertisement: Scroll to Continue
