Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), in collaboration with Japan’s SBI Remit, is using Ripple’s blockchain enterprise solution to power real-time remittance payments between Japan and Thailand. A first in Asia, Ripple’s cross-border payments network solution is helping remittances from Japan reach SCB retail customers easily, and faster than ever before.

Approximately 40,000 Thai nationals currently live in Japan, making it one of the largest sources of foreign nationals in the country. Total remittance flows from Japan to Thailand are roughly USD250 million a year.

The rollout of this new service begins today, and supports individual funds transfers in JPY in Japan to THB in SCB savings accounts in Thailand. Once sent into blockchain network, the funds are credited to a SCB recipient’s account within two to five seconds or about 20 minutes to complete the transaction, a significant uplift compared with the up to two business days it currently can take for a payment to be made between the two countries. SCB plans to roll out the service in other key markets across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific.  

Dr. Arak Sutivong, chief strategy officer, SCB, said: “SCB invests in innovative technology, like Ripple, to provide our retail customers with the financial products and services they increasingly need in this digital age. Customers increasingly expect payments to work in real time, whether domestic or international.

“We are proud to be the first bank in Asia to use Ripple’s leading blockchain network solution to power real-time payments for our customers, whose families oftentimes depend on the availability of these funds for basic needs - time is of the essence to them.  We look forward to continuing our partnership with Ripple as we expand the service into other key markets in the future.”

Marcus Treacher, global head of strategic accounts, Ripple, said: “Ripple’s goal is to make cross-border payments move as quickly and as easily as information does today. In the case of SBI Remit and SCB, our solution helps ensure that remittances from Japan reach their destination in Thailand near instantly. SCB and SBI Remit are leading the way in Asia in serving new customer demands for real-time cross-border payments, making theirs a highly competitive offering. 

“We are excited to expand our relationship with SCB further across their other key markets, and to continue the momentum with commercial traction for the Ripple network worldwide.”

Mr. Nobuo Ando Representative Director, SBI Remit Co., Ltd. said that “It is our duty to continuously search superior technological solutions to deliver ever improved remittance services for our customers. In this context, Ripple was impressive in concept and turned out to be more so in practice. It impressed us particularly for its speed which our customers value much. Furthermore, we can expect to have more favorable foreign exchange opportunities as Ripple network expands. For this, we welcome more institutions to join this platform to enjoy competitive remittance services over conventional methods to our valued customers” 

About SCB

Siam Commercial Bank PCL is one of Thailand’s leading universal banks. Established by Royal Charter in 1906 as the first Thai bank, SCB has the highest market capitalization among Thai financial institutions as of the end of March 2017 (Baht 554 billion). Its network of branches and service points offers nationwide coverage (1,169 branches, 109 foreign exchange kiosks, and 9,724 ATM machines) providing services that meet the demands of all customer groups, including corporate, SME, and retail customers, with total assets of Baht 2,938 billion. More information is available from the website www.scb.co.th

About Ripple

Ripple provides global financial settlement solutions to ultimately enable the world to exchange value like it already exchanges information – giving rise to an Internet of Value (IoV). Ripple solutions lower the total cost of settlement by enabling banks to transact directly and with real-time certainty, optionally using the digital asset XRP to further reduce liquidity costs. Banks around the world are partnering with Ripple to improve their cross-border payment offerings, and to join its growing, global network of financial institutions and liquidity providers.

Ripple is a venture-backed startup with offices in San Francisco, New York, London, Sydney and Luxembourg. As an industry advocate for the Internet of Value, Ripple sits on the Federal Reserve’s Faster Payments Task Force Steering Committee and co-chairs the W3C’s Web Payments Working Group.

About SBI

The SBI Group was established in 1999 as a pioneer of Internet-based financial services in Japan, and currently has formed the world’s first Internet-based financial conglomerate, providing financial services in a broad range of fields including securities, banking and insurance. The SBI Group is endeavoring to offer innovative financial services through collaborations with promising venture companies in the FinTech fields.

SBI Remit Co., Ltd. (SBIR) is a leading international fund transferor in Japan and a core subsidiary of SBI AXES Co., Ltd., which is to be newly named SBI FinTech Solutions Co., Ltd.on July 1st 2017. SBIR has made international remittance for customers in Japan around JPY 300 billion since it went in operation in Dec.2010. SBIR is registered with Financial Services Agency of Japan and abides by Payment Service Act 2009.

Learn more about how Blockchain will redefine finance with Takashi Okita CEO - SBI RIPPLE ASIA at Techsauce Global Summit 2017 in Bangkok this July!