Ripple Managing Director Reece Merrick stated on social media platform X last week:
“Ripple is proud to support Billiton Diamond and Ctrl Alt who have tokenized over AED 1 billion ($280m) of certified polished diamonds on the XRPL.”
He explained, “This initiative shows how Ripple’s technology can bridge the gap between physical assets and the digital economy, utilising our enterprise-grade custody solution to secure high-value diamond assets with unrivalled trust and security.”
The development aligns with broader regional momentum detailed in a new analysis from Kearney in collaboration with Ctrl Alt, which projects nearly $500 billion in tokenization-related value across the Gulf Cooperation Council by 2030. Partner Elias Aad described how tokenization addresses structural frictions such as illiquidity, high minimum investment thresholds, and complex servicing across private markets, real estate, and funds, pointing to regulated use cases already live in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
The report tracked growth in on-chain real-world assets from about $1.1 billion in early 2023 to nearly $20 billion by January 2026 and identified the UAE as the region’s execution leader due to its segmented digital asset regulatory framework. Kearney principal Jeroen Gillekens explained that sustainable scale depends on coordination across issuance, custody, settlement, and secondary trading, while Ctrl alt MENA Chief Executive Officer Robert Farquhar highlighted regulatory clarity and institutional collaboration as drivers of adoption. Together, the findings illustrate how commodities, alongside real estate and funds, are becoming a central component of the GCC’s evolving digital capital markets.
FAQ ⏰ How much value has been tokenized in diamonds using Ripple technology? Over AED 1 billion worth of certified polished diamonds has been tokenized on the XRP Ledger. Which blockchain is being used for diamond tokenization in the UAE? The initiative issues certified diamonds onchain using the XRP Ledger. Why is the UAE leading tokenization adoption in the GCC? The UAE benefits from a segmented digital asset regulatory framework and live regulated use cases. What is the projected tokenization-related value across the GCC by 2030? Kearney projects nearly $500 billion in tokenization-related value across the region.
