Enterprise block chain solutions-provider Ripple has reached a “tipping point” as bank clients have transitioned from blockchain experimentation to deployment. This week the California-based company announced it is helping seven banks accelerate and improve their cross-border payments.

These aren’t just any seven financial institutions. The addition of the new players place 12 of the top 50 global banks as clients in the Ripple network. Here’s the list of new clients:

• Santander
• UniCredit
• UBS
• Reisebank
• CIBC
• ATB Financial
• National Bank of Abu Dhabi

In a blog post, Ripple CEO Chris Larsen says, “This is a major step forward for the global financial system, and as the Ripple network grows, together we are paving the way for new connected commerce opportunities and growing demands for real-time, high-volume, low-value global payments.”

Ripple, which has completed 30 bank pilots, uses a distributed financial ledger technology that lowers the cost of real time payments by using algorithms to find the lowest foreign exchange rate. Many of the company’s bank partners already use Ripple’s ledger to transfer real money, and all have plans to use the ledger in commercial production. Earlier this year Santander became the first U.K. bank to use Ripple for cross-border payments and currently ten of Ripple’s bank clients are in various phases of commercial deals.

So far Ripple has received positive feedback. ATB Chief Strategy and Operations Officer Curtis Stange said, “Using blockchain technology, ATB Financial became the first financial institution in Canada to complete an overseas payment in a matter of seconds.” He added, “Without blockchain, that transaction would have taken two to six business days.”

Earlier this month, we reported a partnership between Ripple and Expertus Payment Platform that lets banks test transmittal of real-time payments using the blockchain in a safe environment with minimal disruption to a bank’s existing infrastructure. Founded in 2009, Ripple launched the Ripple Network at FinovateSpring 2013 under the name OpenCoin.

After New York State began requiring companies to carry a license to engage in virtual currency activity, Ripple has received a BitLicense from the New York Department of Financial Services today. This marks the first New York BitLicense for institutional use of digital assets.

The San Francisco-based company, owner of a distributed ledger and host of the digital currency XRP, will leverage the license to gain footing into New York banks. As CEO Chris Larsen says, “With the BitLicense in hand, we look forward to working with our New York bank customers seeking to use XRP for liquidity and cost savings.” XRP offers banks access to a global payments infrastructure that increases transaction speed, certainty of settlement, and lowers the costs related to treasury operations, payment processing, liquidity and compliance.

The company launched the Ripple Network at FinovateSpring 2013 and recently announced a new initiative to help banks test Ripple integration without disrupting their operations. Early this year, Ripple partnered with SBI Holdings to boost interest in the ASEAN region.