Ripple Adds Fourth Korean Partner but XRP Slides to $1.35
Ripple has signed its fourth Korean institutional partnership of 2026 with Meritz Securities, yet XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) keeps falling anyway.
What the Meritz Deal Actually Covers
Ripple announced Tuesday that it will work with Meritz Securities to explore bringing Ripple Custody and tokenization infrastructure into Korea’s capital markets.
The partnership starts within Meritz’s existing securities business and current regulations, then widens in stages as Korea’s digital asset framework develops.
Ripple Asia Pacific Managing Director Fiona Murray called Korea “one of the most dynamic digital asset markets in the world,” pointing to Ripple’s infrastructure across payments, custody and tokenization, backed by more than 85 licenses across 60-plus markets globally.
Moreover, Meritz Strategic Planning Managing Director Byungha Kang said the deal lays the foundation for combining Ripple’s global infrastructure with the firm’s capital markets capabilities.
How This Fits Ripple’s Broader Korean Push
Meritz marks Ripple’s fourth Korean institutional partnership this year and its first with a securities firm specifically:
| Partner | Date | What It Covers |
| Kyobo Life Insurance | April 2026 | Testing tokenized government-bond settlement via Ripple Custody |
| Kbank | April 2026 | Testing blockchain-based cross-border remittances to UAE and Thailand |
| Jeonbuk Bank | August 2026 | First Korean regional bank using Ripple Payments for cross-border remittance |
| Meritz Securities | October 2026 | Evaluating custody and tokenization infrastructure for capital markets |
Together, these deals span banking, insurance and capital markets, giving Ripple institutional reach across Korea’s financial system rather than a single sector.
Why XRP’s Price Hasn’t Reacted
Despite the steady drumbeat of partnerships, XRP trades near $1.35 after breaking below the rising support line of its symmetrical triangle pattern.
The rebound stays weak, with price sitting below both its 200-day EMA at $1.38 and 50-day EMA at $1.39.
XRP has dropped more than 9% over the past week, according to Santiment, as leveraged long positions got flushed out and the $1.40 level proved difficult to reclaim. Sentiment data backs up the weak price action:
| Asset | Bullish-to-Bearish Ratio | Reading |
| XRP | 0.92 | FUD territory |
| Bitcoin | 0.82 | FUD territory |
| Ethereum | 2.05 | FOMO territory |
Santiment frames XRP and Bitcoin’s fear-driven sentiment as a potential contrarian setup, arguing it could lead to a healthier recovery than Ethereum’s current excitement, though that remains one firm’s interpretation rather than a confirmed outcome.
Key levels for XRP:
- $1.34: 100-day EMA, immediate support
- $1.42 to $1.44: 20-day EMA and broken trendline, key resistance ahead
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