Ripple Secures Landmark UAE Custody Deal: Dubai Property Titles Go Digital on XRPL

Dubai just flipped the script on real estate—Ripple's XRP Ledger now anchors the emirate's property deeds in its first UAE custody partnership.

No more paper trails. The move slashes bureaucracy by digitizing titles on XRPL's decentralized ledger, cutting out middlemen who've been skimming fees since the days of camel caravans.

While traditional banks scramble to retrofit legacy systems, Dubai's land department is already settling transactions at blockchain speed. The deal marks Ripple's biggest institutional foothold in the Middle East—and a direct challenge to SWIFT's stranglehold on cross-border asset transfers.

Funny how 'disruption' suddenly gets real when oil-rich sheikhs start tokenizing their palaces. Maybe Wall Street will notice when the first Burj Khalifa condo trades for XRP.

Ripple’s growing presence in UAE

This marks the first time a government body in the Middle East has issued real estate deeds on a public blockchain. Ripple’s role is to ensure secure and scalable custody infrastructure, while Ctrl Alt provides local execution and support.

For Ripple, this is its first major custody deal in the UAE and part of its broader push across the region.

Reece Merrick, Ripple’s Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa, said:

“The Dubai Land Department’s Real Estate Tokenization Project is a perfect example of the type of forward-thinking, innovative initiative that is positioning Dubai at the heart of the global digital asset industry…That the DLD has chosen the XRPL for this is really exciting and reinforces the XRPL’s credentials as the blockchain of choice for serious financial use cases.”

The project has already launched a pilot phase in partnership with Ripple, Ctrl Alt, and Dubai’s VIRTUAL Assets Regulatory Authority. It’s part of a larger effort to digitize city services and expand blockchain use cases in real estate, finance, and public services.

This deal builds on Ripple’s growing momentum in the UAE, particularly after becoming the first blockchain payments provider licensed by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) earlier this year.

Since then, the firm has also partnered with Zand Bank and Mamo to further cement its presence in the region. Additionally, the DFSA recently approved its RLUSD stablecoin for use within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).