Saudi Arabia Exits China-Led mBridge as Riyad Bank Explores Ripple

TLDR:

• Saudi Arabia ended its mBridge proof of concept on May 13, 2025, after joining as a full participant in 2024.
• Riyad Bank’s Jeel unit is exploring Ripple for payment corridors, digital asset custody, and tokenization.
• Neither SAMA nor Jeel has linked the mBridge exit to XRP, RLUSD, or a replacement cross-border payment plan.
• SAMA first partnered with Ripple in 2018, while Saudi British Bank later used Ripple for India transfers.

Saudi Arabia has ended its participation in mBridge, the China-linked wholesale CBDC project designed to improve cross-border settlement between banks. The move became public on September 20, 2026, but the Saudi Central Bank said the decision followed an earlier participation plan.

SAMA said it completed its proof of concept on May 13, 2025, marking the end of the kingdom’s planned experiment. The central bank joined mBridge as a full participant in June 2024 after previously observing the network.

The exit coincides with separate blockchain work involving Riyad Bank and Ripple, creating a broader picture of Saudi payment experimentation. However, no available evidence links the withdrawal to XRP, RLUSD, or a replacement strategy built around Ripple.

Saudi Arabia Ends mBridge Participation After Planned CBDC Trial

mBridge supports direct cross-border payments and foreign-exchange transactions using wholesale central bank digital currencies. Its distributed ledger was designed to reduce settlement friction between participating commercial banks.

The network reached minimum viable product status in 2024 and could process real-value transactions where participating jurisdictions were ready. Its structure could also reduce reliance on correspondent banks and intermediary currencies during cross-border settlement.

Still, the Bank for International Settlements described the project as a payment-efficiency initiative rather than a BRICS system designed to bypass the dollar or sanctions. The BIS itself left in October 2024 after four years of involvement.

Then-General Manager Agustín Carstens said the organization had “graduated out” and rejected suggestions that political concerns drove the decision. SAMA used a similarly operational explanation, saying its participation ended after the planned proof of concept.

Riyad Bank Tests Ripple for Payments, Custody and Tokenization

Meanwhile, Riyad Bank is examining other blockchain applications through Jeel, its innovation and technology arm. In January, Jeel signed an agreement with Ripple covering payment corridors, digital asset custody, and tokenization.

The two sides also planned proofs of concept through Jeel’s regulatory sandbox. The arrangement extends earlier Saudi blockchain testing rather than replacing the central bank’s mBridge work.

SAMA had already partnered with Ripple in 2018, allowing domestic banks to test xCurrent for cross-border payments. Saudi British Bank later launched a Ripple-powered transfer service after testing payments to India.

Yet neither Jeel nor SAMA has said the latest collaboration involves XRP or RLUSD. Jeel’s announcement referred to Ripple’s broader blockchain technology without naming either asset.

A separate Saudi-XRP link also remains outside government policy. Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Abdulaziz Al Saud led VivoPower’s $121 million private placement for an XRP-focused treasury strategy in May 2025.

That transaction was a private investment, not a central bank decision. Together, the developments show parallel experiments in digital settlement, not evidence that one system is replacing another.

The post Saudi Arabia Exits China-Led mBridge as Riyad Bank Explores Ripple appeared first on Blockonomi.