XRP enjoyed a double digit rise this week on the back of news that the international money transfer giant SWIFT may be on the verge of using it for transactions through a third-party deal, claims that some feel are premature. SWIFT’s deal earlier this week with US-based blockchain startup R3 was thought by some to mean that XRP was going to be used by some of SWIFT’s customers to settle payments, news that got the XRP army all fired up. The mechanics of the deal are not so straightforward however and may exclude XRP altogether.
XRP Out in the Cold?
Under the terms of the SWIFT/R3 deal, SWIFT will allow customers to use something called Corda Settler to settle transactions made through its new global payments platform, GPI. XRP is the cryptocurrency of choice on the Corda Settler platform, but this doesn’t mean users can only use XRP – they now have a choice between the XRP token and SWIFT’s GPI, which essentially offers fiat transactions on the blockchain. Given that both sides of the transaction need to be using the same medium, the chances are that many will opt for the fiat option over the still relatively unknown XRP. Not quite the adoption the moonboys were hoping for, not that this stopped them.
Consider how long it’s taken to this point! Ripples feet are planted firmly for the next step, xrapid, XRP, Ripple will grow into the next monetary power house! As swift crumbles and grabs for control? Swift, Ripple integration! Why would 2 presidents and media shill Ripple??
— Gary (@Gary45285516) January 31, 2019
Ripple Not Doing Themselves Any Favors
SWIFT and Ripple don’t have the best of relationships however, which could count against the XRP token being used as a medium of transfer within the deal. In November last year SWIFT were forced to deny rumors that they were partnering with Ripple, which led to Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse stating that his company were “taking over SWIFT” given what they were “executing on a day-to-day basis”. It’s fair to say that this statement isn’t the best way to ingratiate yourself with a potential partner and might just have welded tight an already closed door in terms of future cooperation.
Garlinghouse clearly sees SWIFT as competition rather than a potential partner, but the news of SWIFT’s deal didn’t stop XRP enjoying a 14% rise and the XRP moonboys getting a day out.
