Ripple signs MOU with Riyad Bank's innovation subsidiary for Saudi Arabia use cases

Ripple, the RLUSD stablecoin issuer has signed a memorandum of understanding with Riyad Bank’s innovation subsidiary to explore blockchain applications within the Kingdom’s financial infrastructure. 

Ripple and Jeel are collaborating to develop distributed ledger use cases and test how blockchain systems could be embedded into Saudi Arabia’s financial architecture. 

Riyad Bank’s Jeel taps Ripple for payments, custody, and tokenization 

Ripple and Jeel plan to develop several financial technology applications under the agreement, including cross-border payments and digital asset custody. For financial institutions in the Gulf region, blockchain systems are viable for cross-border settlements because they are fast and transparent. 

Tokenization initiatives could also form part of the exploratory work, as converting traditional assets into digital representations gains traction in financial centers worldwide. Saudi policymakers have added financial innovation as a pillar of the Vision 2030 agenda. This includes open banking, digital payments, blockchain, and AI-powered financial services.

Jeel, the innovation and technology arm of Riyad Bank, was established to actualize the seven-decade-old digital initiatives and financial technology partnerships. In September, the subsidiary partnered with FinTech Saudi to launch digital innovation programs. 

That collaboration led to the launch of the Jeel Sandbox, a technical platform for the Saudi fintech community that supports development, testing, and licensing processes. It allows financial technology firms to try out digital asset trading services in line with the monarch’s regulatory boundaries.

Jeel also teamed up with cloud-native core banking technology provider Mambu, which provides the modular banking architecture that underpins the platform’s technology layer. The sandbox is hosted on the Google Cloud platform and enables developers to deploy simulated interfaces for wallet services into banking-as-a-service platforms.

Cloud zone centers fuel Saudi’s digital infrastructure push 

According to a report from local news publication AGBI, Saudi Arabia is also launching a cloud computing special economic zone near Riyadh. The initiative is set to take effect from early April 2026 and will include tax and regulatory incentives for investors.

The policy targets cloud providers and data center operators with high setup costs, along with the energy demands of digital infrastructure projects. Companies in the cloud zone will be subject to corporate income tax, but zakat rules will not apply, different from other Saudi economic zones.

Regulatory frameworks for the zones will enter legal force from early April 2026, following the publication in the official gazette on January 16. Licensed entities will have an additional 90 days to comply with requirements.

Alyusef noted that the guidance on tax relief and qualification conditions is pending, although he predicted a short settling-in period as administrative processes develop.

Meanwhile, Fitch Ratings said the Kingdom’s debt capital market could reach $600 billion outstanding by the end of 2026. The outstanding Saudi debt exceeded $520 billion in 2025, a 21% year-over-year increase, while Sukuk instruments accounted for 62% of the total.

“Almost all Fitch-rated Saudi sukuk are investment grade, with issuers on Stable Outlooks and no defaults. Following reforms, foreign investors now contribute more than 10 percent of the government’s outstanding direct domestic issuance in primary local markets at the end of 2025,” Fitch Ratings Islamic Finance head Bashar Al-Natoor told reporters earlier today.

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