Anthony Welfare, a former adviser to Ripple on central bank digital currencies, says the XRP Ledger (XRPL) possesses the technology needed to support large-scale banking and cross-border payments. However, he cautioned that strong technology alone does not guarantee institutional adoption or price appreciation for the XRP token.
Technical Capabilities for Banking and Payments
Speaking on the AllinCrypto Podcast, Welfare highlighted XRPL's ability to process transactions in seconds and support cross-border payments, tokenized assets, and low-cost transfers. He stated there is no fundamental reason the network cannot scale to meet the requirements of banking systems, payment platforms, and governments.
XRPL enables users to trade assets and send money between wallets in less than three seconds. Welfare pointed to Ripple (RLUSD), a dollar-backed stablecoin, as an example of how the network can facilitate digital payments. In the future, users could transfer digital versions of currencies, stocks, and other assets through blockchain networks.
Barriers to Institutional Adoption
Beyond transaction speed, institutions require additional infrastructure to adopt XRPL, according to Welfare. These requirements include sufficient liquidity, reliable asset backing, custody services, and compliance systems.
Interoperability presents another challenge. Businesses may use Ethereum, Arbitrum, private blockchains, or other systems rather than relying on a single ledger, requiring solutions for connecting different networks.
Welfare noted that companies are moving beyond blockchain trials toward pilot programs and real-world applications, though much of this work remains private.
Network Growth Does Not Guarantee Token Appreciation
When asked whether ecosystem growth would drive an XRP price rally, Welfare clarified that increased XRPL transaction volumes do not automatically lead to higher XRP demand or prices. Banks and companies can use the XRP Ledger to send money and move digital assets without necessarily increasing demand for the XRP token itself.
The impact on XRP value depends on how the token is used in payments, along with other factors including available funds, asset backing, secure storage, and payment mechanisms. Higher transaction volumes alone do not guarantee increased XRP demand or price appreciation.
