Ripple Pursues Australian Financial Services License via Strategic Acquisition

Ripple is making a significant move into the Australian financial market by seeking an Australian Financial Services License (AFSL) through the planned acquisition of BC Payments Australia Pty Ltd. The deal, still pending completion, would give Ripple full regulatory authorization to operate its end-to-end payments platform across Australia under a single integration — covering onboarding, compliance, foreign exchange, funding, liquidity management, and payouts.

Rather than pursuing a direct AFSL application, which can be a lengthy process, Ripple chose to acquire an already-licensed entity, allowing for a faster path to market. However, the license remains contingent on the acquisition closing successfully.

Several Australian businesses are already leveraging Ripple Payments, including Hai Ha Money Transfer, Stables, Caleb & Brown, Flash Payments, and Independent Reserve — signaling strong early adoption ahead of full licensing. Fiona Murray, Ripple's Managing Director for Asia Pacific, emphasized the strategic importance of the region, noting that securing an AFSL will significantly strengthen the company's ability to scale Ripple Payments across the Asia-Pacific market.

The timing aligns with impressive regional growth. Ripple reported that its APAC payments volume nearly doubled year-over-year in 2025, complementing the $100 billion in total processed volume the company disclosed last week alongside announcements of managed custody, virtual account collections, and stablecoin settlement features across 60 global markets.

Ripple is also participating in Project Acacia, a digital asset infrastructure initiative led by the Reserve Bank of Australia in partnership with the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre, further reinforcing its regulatory and institutional credibility in the region.

As Ripple deepens its regulatory footprint in Australia, XRP continues to attract market attention, recently trading at $1.38, reflecting a 0.3% daily gain and 1.7% weekly increase, as investor confidence in Ripple's global expansion strategy appears to be growing.