Ripple, creator of the eponymous payments network and XRP token, announced on May 17 that it has acquired Swiss digital asset custodian and tokenization provider Metaco for $250 million. With the acquisition, Ripple said it will expand its enterprise offerings to custo dy, issue and settle tokenized assets. The company's developers wrote: "Metaco will significantly accelerate its growth trajectory with access to Ripple's established customer base of hundreds, capital to meet emerging needs, and resources to continue to deliver on its commitment to bank ing and institutional clients."
Ripple estimates that the institutional crypto custody market will reach $10 trillion by 2030. Its research also revealed that “a majority of global financial leaders among financial institutions” plan to use crypto custody solutions within the next three y ears. It cited BNY Mellon's crypto custody management plan and Nasdaq's plans to launch crypto custody services in the second quarter as examples. Adrien Treccani, Founder and CEO of Metaco, commented: "This transaction will allow Metaco to leverage Ripple's scale and market strength to achieve our goals and deliver value to our clients at a faster rate. We look forward to continuing to meet unprecedented institutional demand."
Metaco's main product is Harmonize, an institutional standard for digital asset custody and tokenization infrastructure that the company says is used by major financial institutions. Founded in 2015, Metaco had raised $20 million in four funding rounds before its May 17 announcement, according to Crunchbase data "Ripple will continue to build on our strengths in areas critical to crypto infrastructure," commented Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse.
