Ripple Teams up with Metaco and HSBC to Make a Significant Move into the $10 Trillion Crypto Custody Market
In a recent interview on the Thinking Crypto Podcast, Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO) David Schwartz provided insights into Ripple’s strategic move into the projected $10 trillion crypto custody market. The interview centered around Ripple’s acquisition of Metaco, a firm that focuses on custody services, and its subsequent partnership with global banking giant HSBC.
Schwartz emphasized the significance of a secure custody solution in Ripple’s objective to become a comprehensive platform for institutional crypto adoption. The acquisition of Metaco, which amounted to a quarter of a billion dollars, positioned Ripple to offer a wide range of services, including access to the XRP Ledger, tokenization, and payments.
The CTO expressed enthusiasm about the partnership with HSBC and revealed their plans to offer clients a custody service for digital assets. HSBC’s role involves utilizing technology for custody purposes and providing compliance services to alleviate the regulatory burden for institutions holding cryptocurrencies.
Custody, which is projected to become a $10 trillion market by 2030, supports the growing trend of tokenization. Schwartz speculated that institutions seeking crypto solutions would likely turn to providers that offer a comprehensive suite of services, including custody, payments, and liquidity.
The conversation also touched on HSBC’s interest in tokenized commodities such as gold and securities. Schwartz acknowledged the ongoing process of aligning Ripple’s and Metaco’s strategies to achieve optimal synergy. In Schwartz’s words, Ripple aims to establish itself as the “leading enterprise solution provider in the space.”
Schwartz commented, “I think we’re still in the process of figuring out how to adjust Ripple’s and Metaco’s strategies to take advantage of what the other can provide.”
Ripple’s strategic acquisitions and partnerships with Metaco and HSBC are bolstering the firm’s position, as XRP ETFs or IPOs are not the company’s primary focus.