SWIFT Questions Ripple and XRP’s Readiness for Banks
SWIFT’s Chief Innovation Officer, Tom Zschach, shared doubts about whether Ripple’s technology and its token, XRP, can meet the high standards that global banks require for international payments.
His comments, posted on LinkedIn, stirred debate in the XRP community, which often promotes Ripple as a competitor to SWIFT.
Zschach explained that while some see XRP as a good bridge for cross-border transactions, banks may not trust it fully. He questioned if banks would ever be comfortable depending on a token that isn’t a regulated form of money or recorded on their balance sheets.
According to him, liquidity is only one issue—legal certainty is another. He suggested that if tokenized deposits or regulated stablecoins become widely used, banks may prefer those over XRP since they already trust and issue them.
On Blockchains in Finance
In another post, Zschach discussed blockchain’s role in the financial system. He said debates about decentralization often miss the key point: financial networks must be fair and safe for all participants.
He compared public blockchains to a “fast engine with no cockpit,” meaning they are powerful but lack essential controls like legal rules, privacy protections, and regulatory oversight.
For Zschach, this missing “trust layer” explains why banks continue using SWIFT. Unlike blockchains, SWIFT doesn’t issue its own assets or compete with its members, making it neutral and reliable.
He added that while blockchains like Ethereum can be part of the solution, real financial systems also need governance, regulation, and enforceability. Code alone can’t solve billion-dollar disputes, which is why banks still rely on SWIFT—and why blockchains are more likely to complement, not replace, its role.
