SBI President Now Part Of Ripple’s Board
In the latest digital currency news, Ripple has decided to bring a new member on its board of directors. The blockchain payments startup is adding SBI Holdings’ very own CEO and representative director named Yoshitaka Kitao. Here is everything about it in nutshell.
The Inclusion of Kitao
According to the official report, the company announced the inclusion of Kita, who is also the current president of the Japanese financial giant. The startup made the announcement recently while suggesting that the executive would replace Takashi Okita, the CEO of SBI Ripple Asia.
Kitao is certainly a huge name in the industry, especially after feature a resume worth of 40 years of work experience. He is a massive player in the global financial markets. In fact, he is responsible for establishing SBI Holdings, a milestone he first achieved back in 1999. In addition, he is known for working with Nomura Securities and Softbank Corporation.
According to Chris Larsen, the co-founder and executive chairman of Ripple’s board of directors, half of the company’s customers are situated in the Asia Pacific today. As such, they want to rapidly continue their efforts in expanding the company’s “global footprint” across the said region. The arrival of Kitao, according to him, is definitely at “a perfect time” for the blockchain payments firm. This is simply due to the fact that the company wants to expand its customer base in Asia and beyond.
Ripple and SBI Holdings’ History
It is worth noting that the relationship made by Ripple and SBI holdings is not entirely new in the industry. In the past, the two companies decided to join efforts in an attempt to introduce a joint initiative, which would then be known as SBI Ripple Asia. The joint initiative obtained a license to bring forth its blockchain-based payments app, which is specifically designed for consumers. The launching, in particular, happened in last September 2019. Also, a month following the launch, the two released the app called MoneyTap.
SBI Ripple Asia also created a consortium in 2019 and it was meant to investigate the utilization of blockchain technology in securities products. The goal is to significantly boost efficiency for all customers and, more importantly, reduce operational costs for the two companies.
In related news, the Saudi British Bank (SABB) has recently revealed its plans to launch the so-called “instant” cross-border money transfer services. Interestingly, this will be done through Ripple and is meant to improve overall customer experience.