Morgan Stanley (MS) has put Ripple’s XRP (XRP-USD) at the center of the cross-border payments debate. The bank said the XRP Ledger could cut processing costs by as much as 60% while also freeing up bank capital that is normally locked away in pre-funded accounts. If XRP becomes the default bridge currency, Morgan Stanley believes it could change up the way banks move money across borders.
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The bank’s analysts even floated the possibility of a Ripple-based ETF adding as much as $1 trillion in liquidity to the market. This type of inflow would boost volumes and bring XRP into the same conversation as traditional assets widely used by institutions.
Ripple’s Ambition to Capture Market Share
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has gone further than Morgan Stanley. He believes XRP can capture 14% of SWIFT’s massive market share, which handles more than $150 trillion in annual transactions. A shift of that scale would give XRP a level of adoption no other cryptocurrency has reached.
For investors, the idea is that if Ripple convinces banks and institutions to use its rails, the token’s price could rise with demand. The timing is important as multiple XRP ETF applications are set for decisions in late October. Approval could be the first domino that pushes adoption forward.
SWIFT Pushes Back on Ripple
SWIFT has not been silent in the face of these claims. Its Chief Innovation Officer dismissed Ripple’s legal victories, arguing that “surviving a lawsuit isn’t resilience.” He stressed that financial institutions prefer a neutral governance model rather than relying on the technology of a direct competitor.
At the same time, SWIFT is testing blockchain solutions of its own. Trials of both XRP and Hedera’s HBAR are underway, though results will not be clear until at least November. The outcome of these tests will show whether SWIFT plans to embrace outside technology or stick with its legacy systems.
Nevertheless, XRP has powerful backers, clear legal standing after years in court, and the possibility of new ETFs that could open the floodgates of institutional money. Yet SWIFT is deeply entrenched, and the hurdles of regulation, trust, and governance remain high.
October and November will be defining months. If Ripple’s banking ambitions and ETF approvals line up with positive SWIFT test results, XRP could finally break into the mainstream of global finance. If not, it may remain an outsider looking in.
At the time of writing, XRP is sitting at $3.0444.
