Japanese banking group SBI Holdings is set to announce the launch of a mobile payments app powered by Ripple’s blockchain-based payment system. Dubbed MoneyTap, the app will be available to users on Android and iOS.
The development was revealed by Takashi Okita, the CEO of SBI Ripple Asia who revealed the name, website and brand identity of the platform in a tweet. SBI Ripple Asia is a joint venture created as part of a partnership between SBI Holdings and Ripple Labs Inc to provide a next-generation DLT-based payment platform for financial institutions and remittance companies.
The tweet, which was originally written in Japanese said:
The teaser for MoneyTap has been quietly released.
How about an image of the logo and the screen? moneytap.jp
Okita did not detail an exact launch date for MoneyTap, but information on the firm’s website shows it will become available sometime this autumn for Android and iOS users, as well customers of the SBI Net Sumishin Bank, Suruga Bank and Resona Bank.
SBI’s Partnership With Ripple
In July, CryptoGlobe reported that SBI Group CEO Yoshitaka Kitao described Ripple’s offering as “battle tested”, praising the San-Francisco-based startup as the only company that has delivered proven enterprise solutions and global bank customer traction, including commercial deals with top banks already signed in the Asia Pacific region.
MoneyTap is a venture that will seemingly solidify the partnership between SBI and Ripple. The project already has support from the Japan Banking Consortium, and SBI says services will be extended to 61 members of the consortium after it launches.
Using MoneyTap, customers will be able to carry out domestic transactions around the clock using only a phone number or a scannable QR code, which substantially cuts down on the amount of time required to carry out transactions using existing conventional banking systems.
CryptoGlobe reported recently that Ripple has announced the National Commercial Bank (NCB) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia became its latest user of RippleNet, its flagship cross-border payments solution.
