Ripple Partners With Meritz Securities to Explore Crypto Custody and Tokenization in South Korea

• Ripple and Meritz Securities will explore institutional digital asset custody and tokenization in South Korea.
• Meritz is also reviewing spot ETFs, fractional investments, security tokens, trading platforms and won-denominated stablecoins.
• The partnership will begin under existing regulations, with possible expansion as the rules develop.

Ripple has signed a strategic partnership with South Korean securities firm Meritz Securities to explore institutional digital asset custody and tokenization infrastructure for the country’s capital markets. The agreement, announced on October 14, 2026, marks Ripple’s first partnership with a South Korean securities firm as it expands its work with financial institutions in the country.

Under the agreement, the companies will examine how Ripple Custody and Ripple’s tokenization infrastructure could be used within Meritz Securities’ existing business. Ripple Custody is designed for regulated financial institutions, providing infrastructure for the secure storage, transfer and settlement of digital assets.

The companies plan to begin their cooperation within South Korea’s existing regulatory framework and Meritz’s current securities business. They may expand their work in stages as the country develops its rules for digital assets, according to Ripple’s announcement.

The partnership comes as Meritz Securities prepares for the possible integration of digital assets into South Korea’s regulated financial system. The firm is examining several potential business areas, including spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs), fractional investment products, security tokens, digital asset trading platforms and Korean won-denominated stablecoins.

Meritz Explores New Digital Asset Services

The agreement does not confirm that Meritz will launch any of these products through Ripple. Instead, the firms will assess how institutional custody and tokenization technology could support future services as regulations evolve.

For financial institutions, custody infrastructure is an important part of managing digital assets. It provides systems for safeguarding assets and handling transfers and settlement. Tokenization, meanwhile, allows financial assets to be represented digitally on blockchain networks, potentially supporting new ways to issue, hold and transfer them.

Byungha Kang, managing director of Meritz Securities’ Strategic Planning Unit, said the partnership would combine Ripple’s global digital asset infrastructure with Meritz’s capital markets capabilities. He added that the firm would prepare digital asset financial services gradually as South Korea’s regulatory framework develops.

For Ripple, the agreement adds another institutional relationship in Asia. The company said Meritz is its fourth institutional partner in South Korea in 2026, following Kyobo Life Insurance, Kbank and Jeonbuk Bank.

Kyobo Life Insurance is working with Ripple Custody on tokenized government-bond settlement, while Kbank is deploying digital asset wallet infrastructure. Jeonbuk Bank adopted Ripple Payments for cross-border remittances.

Ripple said it operates across more than 60 markets and holds over 85 licenses globally. However, the Meritz announcement did not specify a product launch date, disclose financial terms or confirm whether future services would use XRP or the XRP Ledger.

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