A Cape Town-based fintech company Xago launches XRP only gateway and exchange in South Africa. It announced the launch of its Ripple gateway and custom-built exchange, that connects to and utilizes RippleNet to trade, send and receive XRP only, the native digital asset used by Ripple.
Ripple (XRP) is an independent digital asset that is native to the Ripple Consensus Ledger. With proven governance and the fastest transaction confirmation of its kind, XRP is said to be the most efficient settlement option for financial institutions and liquidity providers seeking global reach, accessibility and fast settlement finality for interbank flows
Xago has built the exchange in order to create liquidity of XRP in South Africa, acting as the market-making platform for cryptocurrency enthusiasts and businesses that wish to trade with and utilize XRP and the Ripple Ledger. Due to the fast settlement between wallets, RippleNet is a viable option for transferring value between exchanges, reducing exposure to volatility.
Xago was founded by Jurgen Kuhnel (CEO), Sonya Kuhnel (COO) and Mark Chirnside (Chairman) in 2016 and incubated out of CiTi’s Bandwidth Barn in Woodstock thanks to Ian Merrington and his team. The company believes that blockchain technology, and in particular RippleNet, will play a critical role in transforming the payments industry.
By solving the double-spending problem the Bitcoin blockchain opened up digital peer-to-peer payments without the need for a trusted 3rd party through the process of mining. Ripple took this one step further and built a faster and more cost-effective decentralised ledger to compete in the high throughput and fast clearing retail and banking environments, says CEO Jurgen Kuhnel referring to their choice to specifically focus on Ripple and XRP.
Once the exchange has sufficient liquidity, Xago will launch its payment switch which connects to the retailers through their existing hardware and software systems. Where Xago is utilized, it will replace the need for acquirers and card networks for retailers, and with the use of RippleNet and XRP enable cross-border payments in the future. Consumers will be able to pay for goods and transact at the point of sale using only their mobile and mobile number, bypassing traditional payment rails.
Xago’s mobile number based identity system is built to connect mobile devices, the blockchain and retailers in one seamless experience. Together with significantly lower transaction fees, the Xago platform is gearing to compete in the high stakes retail environment. This will enable clients to create new and innovative products that will ultimately benefit the end consumer.
In late 2018, the start-up received investment from African Technology Investments Ltd. It has spent the 1st half of 2019 setting up operations and engaging with the regulators and the broader ecosystem to build a best-in-class product that will not only add value to its clients but also comply with regulations going forward.
The start-up has a broader vision for payments across Africa and has plans to expand operations into other markets in the future.
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