Ripple executives placed digital asset custody at the center of institutional adoption, revealing a set of four guiding principles for providers during a joint workshop with the Blockchain Association Singapore (BAS).
The event also examined the use of stablecoins and security, reflecting the growing momentum in the tokenization of real-world assets.
Four pillars for custody providers
In a company blog post, Ripple executives Rahul Advani, co-global head of policy, and Caren Tso, Asia-Pacific policy manager, highlighted compliance by design, customized custody models, operational resilience, and governance as key areas that institutions should prioritize.
They stated that compliance by design reflects the regulatory requirements of bodies such as the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), which requires rigorous protocols for asset segregation and recovery. Institutions, in turn, must choose custody models that best meet their operational needs—whether third-party, hybrid, or self-custody.
New frameworks, such as the EU's Digital Operational Resilience Act, highlight the critical importance of operational resilience. Providers must design workflows to support service disruptions and meet rigorous recovery standards. The workshop presented governance—through segregation of duties, independent oversight, and audit trails—as vital to sustaining trust in institutional crypto services.
Custody is a critical entry point for scalability
According to executives, custody now represents a 'critical entry point' for companies looking to expand digital finance. They argued that enterprise-level custody enables the adoption of stablecoins, tokenized assets, and cross-border settlement.
The BAS workshop addressed institutional standards for the custody of stablecoins. It culminated in the release of a best practices report by its stablecoin and cybersecurity subcommittees. Ripple emphasized the role of custody in making stablecoins usable for trade finance, cross-border payments, and corporate cash flow management.
The company noted that custodians can accelerate this transformation through API integration, anti-money laundering (AML) safeguards, and programmable compliance tools. Tokenized commercial documents were highlighted as a use case where custody infrastructure could protect sensitive financial records.
Ripple's stablecoin and market outlook
Ripple highlighted its stablecoin in US dollars, Ripple USD (RLUSD), launched under a New York Trust Company Charter. The coin must maintain segregated reserves, undergo third-party audits, and remain fully backed by the dollar.
Ripple also described its custody platform as designed to help institutions manage tokenized assets within rigorous operational and legal parameters.
Ripple executives pointed to a joint Ripple-BCG report that projects that tokenized real-world assets could reach $18.9 trillion by 2033. Standard Chartered offered an even higher forecast, of up to $30 trillion by 2034.
Ripple's research shows that more than half of companies in the Asia-Pacific plan to adopt custody solutions within three years. This shift is driven by a 380% growth in the tokenized real-world assets market, reaching $24 billion by June 2025.
The trend is attracting global financial heavyweights. Goldman Sachs and BNY Mellon are testing blockchain-based tokenized money market funds, while BlackRock, Coinbase, Bank of America, and Citi are actively exploring tokenization and digital securities offerings.
The Ripple article states that custody is crucial: four pillars for providers was first seen on BeInCrypto Brasil.
