In the world of cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin is undoubtedly the core of the narrative, representing decentralization, censorship resistance, and the storage of value as digital gold. However, if we shift our perspective to the 'remodeling of the global financial system and the efficiency revolution', the real potential leader in the next structural change may not be Bitcoin, but $XRP .
Ripple (the company behind XRP) has long been committed to solving the most challenging problems in the international payments sector: slow cross-border payment speeds, high costs, and prolonged settlement cycles. Compared to Bitcoin, which processes 7 transactions per second with an average confirmation time of 10 minutes, XRP can handle 1,500 transactions per second, with transactions almost completed instantly and fees as low as $0.0002. This performance not only far exceeds that of Bitcoin and Ethereum but also surpasses most traditional clearing institutions.
More importantly, Ripple's design logic is not solely for transactions but is aimed at solving systemic issues such as global liquidity fragmentation and delayed fund settlements. The traditional SWIFT system only transmits payment instructions rather than the settlement funds themselves, so the actual transfer of funds still requires intermediaries, multi-layered reconciliation, and fiat currency exchange, resulting in high costs. RippleNet, combined with XRP as a bridging asset, has achieved the innovation of 'payment equals settlement', posing a substantial challenge to the current financial infrastructure.
This is particularly critical in the current international financial situation of the U.S. The dollar's status as the global reserve currency is facing multiple challenges: geopolitical changes are pushing for de-dollarization, and the digital yuan of Asian countries (especially China) is accelerating international pilots, making it imperative for the U.S. to launch a new generation of payment systems that can compete technologically. At this time, XRP's 'enterprise-level clearing network' characteristics may just fill this strategic gap.
From an application perspective, Ripple has already established an international cooperation network covering Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, the UAE, and other regions. The Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings is not only an early shareholder of Ripple but also co-founded SBI Ripple Asia with Ripple to promote dozens of Japanese and Southeast Asian banks' access to RippleNet, piloting cross-border settlements using XRP as a bridging asset. If such a network continues to expand, it will pose a real challenge to the dollar's settlement hegemony.
It is worth emphasizing that the biggest variable hindering XRP's development, the lawsuit with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), officially ended in March 2025 after four years. The SEC withdrew its lawsuit against Ripple and reached a $50 million settlement agreement, with the court clearly stating that trading XRP on the open market does not constitute a security. This not only provides official certification for XRP's legitimacy but also opens the door for its entry into the mainstream financial market.
For this reason, by 2025, U.S. regulatory agencies have begun to approve XRP futures ETFs and review applications for spot XRP ETFs, marking XRP's transition from a previously excluded 'problem asset' to an infrastructure-type crypto asset absorbed by the system. This policy shift is undoubtedly a significant adjustment in the U.S. fintech strategy.
In summary, Bitcoin has changed the definition of currency, but XRP may rewrite the reality of global clearing and financial dominance. The true institutional change in the future will not come from the highly speculative atmosphere of cryptocurrencies but from those technologies that are deeply embedded in the underlying structures of banks and financial enterprises and possess macro strategic value. XRP may just be the most underestimated protagonist in this transformation.
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