A foreign exchange giant owned by Travelex billionaire Bavaguthu Shetty has adopted cryptocurrency Ripple for its international payments, the latest major financial player to lend its backing to blockchain technology.

UAE Exchange, one of the largest in the Middle East, has signed up to the San Francisco Bitcoin rival's RippleNet network for cross-border payments.

"Incorporating Ripple’s blockchain technology into our payments systems will bring customers an enhanced, new payments experience," said Promoth Manghat, CEO of UAE Exchange Group.

"The early adoption of this game-changing technology allows us to offer a competitive service, as it will have an impact on the speed and cost of cross-border transactions. We are proud to deliver the future of payments with Ripple."

UAE Exchange, whose billionaire owner bought Travelex in 2014, said it has a 6.75pc share of the $575 billion global remittance market, with ambitions to take on 10pc by 2020. It has 800 branches in more than 30 countries, making it the largest UAE-based exchange to incorporate blockchain into its daily operations.