Santanter is expected to launch Ripple payments this spring!

One of the most important partnerships Ripple announced was with banking group Santander, which gave the cryptocurrency a significant price boost. Investors were also excited at the news, as it was just a start for the digital asset, which seems to be the king of partnerships lately.

However, despite the partnership being confirmed some time ago, Santander is still not using Ripple. Yet.

An app, coming soon to a smartphone near you

According to a report from CoinTelegraph, the group will release an international money transfer app using Ripple’s Blockchain xCurrent and RippleNet platforms.

The plans regarding the launch of the app were confirmed by UK CEO of Santander, Nathan Bostock, during the International Fintech conference in London, on March 23.

“This spring, if not [sic] one beats us to it, we will be the first large retail bank to carry out cross-border payments at scale with Blockchain technology,” he said.

Earlier this year, at the end of January, to be more specific, Santander CEO Ana Botin also mentioned the app launch, while presenting the banking group’s 2017 earning presentation. Apparently, the app will initially be available in just a few countries – Spain, Brazil, United Kingdom and Polan – while other territories could follow soon, depending on how it will be received.

The app will offer a digital wallet, alongside a personal finance manager and the possibility to make same-day international payments and P2P payments.

The results of a long-time partnership, to be revealed soon

The relationship between Ripple and Santander isn’t something new though, as the first investments were made in 2015 and 2016, before the company’s cryptocurrency, XRP, made it to the mainstream. Specifically, an international payment app was tested, showing that Ripple’s technology completed transfers in less than a day. The app will be available to show an estimate of the cost of a money transfer, as a side note.

Until now, some of the most important deals Ripple signed were with MoneyGram, in an attempt to speed fiat settlements, as well as a consortium of 61 Japanese banks, for creating an instant domestic payments app, as well as a South Korean bank for “commercial” international remittances.