TL;DR
- Ripple and BBVA have entered a new agreement to bring Ripple’s custody technology into Spain, enabling secure retail access to bitcoin and ether.
- The deal reinforces BBVA’s commitment to expand crypto services under Europe’s MiCA framework, while also showcasing Ripple’s growing presence in regulated banking.
- With this move, Spanish retail traders gain direct exposure to digital assets backed by one of the country’s largest financial institutions.
Ripple, a global leader in blockchain and digital asset infrastructure, has announced a new custody deal with Spanish banking giant BBVA. This agreement gives BBVA the ability to integrate Ripple Custody, an institutional-grade self-custody solution, into its recently launched crypto trading and custody services for retail customers in Spain. The development also highlights a growing confidence from traditional finance toward blockchain-based solutions that go far beyond speculative use cases.
The partnership comes at a time when the European Union’s MiCA regulation is providing a clear legal framework for digital assets. This regulatory clarity has encouraged traditional banks to roll out new services, ensuring that customers can buy and hold cryptocurrencies with the same security standards applied to conventional financial products. In addition, it strengthens Spain’s position as one of the European hubs where institutional adoption of crypto is advancing most rapidly.
Ripple Technology Strengthens BBVA’s Retail Offering
BBVA has been gradually expanding its digital asset strategy. After first launching crypto-related services in Switzerland and later in Turkey, the bank is now extending its offering to Spain, one of its most important retail markets. By adopting Ripple Custody, BBVA ensures its customers benefit from robust compliance, advanced security, and seamless integration with tokenized assets across multiple platforms and future digital marketplaces.
According to Francisco Maroto, Head of Digital Assets at BBVA, the bank’s goal is to combine innovation with trust: by leveraging Ripple’s proven infrastructure, clients can access crypto markets without compromising safety or reliability. This positions BBVA as one of the few major European banks offering a direct end-to-end custody solution for retail investors.
Expanding Global Collaboration Between Ripple And BBVA
This new agreement builds on years of collaboration between Ripple and BBVA, which have worked together on cross-border payment pilots and custody solutions in other regions. Ripple’s track record includes providing custody services to Garanti BBVA in Turkey and BBVA Switzerland, as well as collaborations with other financial institutions exploring tokenization and digital asset liquidity.
With over a decade of experience and more than sixty regulatory approvals worldwide, Ripple is reinforcing its presence in Europe’s rapidly evolving crypto ecosystem. For Spanish traders, the deal represents not just another entry point into digital assets, but a step toward broader institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies under clear regulatory oversight and growing global confidence.
