Ripple, a provider of enterprise blockchain solutions for payments, announced on Tuesday it has expanded its University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI) to Japan. According to Ripple, the expansion brings on new partners including Kyoto University and the University of Tokyo. While sharing more details about the expansion, Eric van Miltenburg, SVP of Global Operations at Ripple, stated:
“University partners will continue to increase positive awareness of the transformative impact that blockchain technology will have across various industries. As the industry matures, the academic community plays a pivotal role in paving the road for innovative companies and entrepreneurs leveraging blockchain technologies and digital assets. Expanding the UBRI network across the globe to a wide range of university partners will only continue to promote and accelerate the development of blockchain technology and use cases.”
Emi Yoshikawa, Senior Director of Global Operations at Ripple, also commented:
“Japan is quickly becoming a leading force in crypto assets and blockchain. The region has always been forward thinking and exploring ways to improve the current financial system. We have seen high levels of interest from the academic community on topics around blockchain and crypto. Ripple is committed to engaging and inspiring students to become part of the workforce of the future, across areas such as blockchain, distributed computing, banking and fintech.”
Ripple then noted that UBRI has partnered with the world’s top universities to support on research, curricula development, conferences and events, and scholarships. Each university partner determines its own research topics and areas of focus. Ripple added:
“In addition to providing financial resources, Ripple is committed to collaborating with universities by providing subject matter expertise and technical resources as needed.”
