XRP News Today: Ripple Expands Institutional Custody Services in Middle East with Dubai Land Department Partnership

Ripple has made significant strides in expanding its institutional custody services, particularly in the Middle East. The company has partnered with Ctrl Alt to support the Dubai Land Department’s (DLD) Real Estate Tokenization Project, a move that underscores Ripple’s growing global custody footprint and the increasing institutional interest in XRP in the UAE.

Monica Long, President of Ripple, emphasized the critical role of Ripple Custody in this initiative. In a post on X, she highlighted the importance of secure, institutional-grade custody, stating that as trillions of dollars of assets become tokenized worldwide, bank-grade custody and security are paramount. She noted that safeguarding the DLD’s tokenized title deeds on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) is a complex task, reinforcing Ripple’s position as a trusted provider of institutional-grade infrastructure.

The DLD launched this tokenization initiative in May, with Ripple’s custody solution responsible for the secure and scalable storage of these tokenized assets. This effort aims to enable more transparent and efficient real estate transactions, opening the door to fractional ownership. The move aligns with Dubai’s broader push to modernize its asset markets through tokenization and digital transformation.

Ripple’s institutional-grade custody technology will serve as the foundation for securing tokenized property ownership records, which are now being issued on XRPL. This infrastructure will enable global investors to securely access Dubai’s real estate market, potentially redefining asset accessibility and participation in the region.

This partnership complements Ripple’s expansion in the UAE’s digital asset space. Earlier this year, Ripple became the first blockchain-enabled payments firm to be licensed by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), opening up a new market for XRP adoption. Ripple has also formed key relationships with regional financial institutions such as Zand Bank and Mamo. Both XRP and RLUSD are approved for use within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

With over a decade of experience and regulatory licenses across more than 60 jurisdictions, Ripple is positioning itself as a central infrastructure provider for tokenized asset markets. The UAE’s integration of Ripple Custody into the national real estate system demonstrates the growing institutional confidence in the firm’s role in powering the tokenized economy. As tokenization expands, Ripple and XRP will play more prominent roles.

RippleX, the developer arm of Ripple, is actively working to enhance the XRP Ledger by making its newest asset class, Multi-Purpose Tokens (MPTs), more recognizable, sortable, and integrable. This push towards standardization aims to transform the XRP Ledger into a more versatile and user-friendly platform, potentially attracting more developers and enterprises to build on its infrastructure.

The XRP Ledger's technological prowess is further evidenced by its strong technical network, which can process a high number of transactions per second. This capability positions XRP as a robust solution for various industries, including healthcare. XRP Healthcare, built on the XRP Ledger, is enhancing access to healthcare services through a US Prescription Card and expanding African healthcare via AI-driven acquisitions. These initiatives highlight the XRP Ledger's potential to revolutionize sectors beyond finance, leveraging its speed and efficiency to drive innovation.

Ripple's co-founder and executive chairman, Chris Larsen, has been actively moving significant amounts of XRP. Recently, a wallet belonging to Larsen transferred $26 million in XRP to the Coinbase crypto exchange. This move comes as XRP closes in on all-time highs, indicating a potential shift in the market dynamics and investor sentiment towards the cryptocurrency.

The growing institutional interest in XRP is further bolstered by the announcement of an executive order that will allow 401k retirement plans to invest in cryptocurrencies. This development is expected to bring more traditional investors into the crypto space, potentially driving further adoption and growth for XRP and the broader Ripple ecosystem.