Rumors, Lunch, and Ledgers: A Twain-Style Take on SWIFT and XRP

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Rumors drift through X like dust off the riverbank, talkin’ up a private luncheon in Miami where SWIFT and Ripple’s captains might have chewed the same notion and spit out a shared ledger. If you ask me, it sounds like two prowlin’ foxes lettin’ the coop door swing just to see which way the coop is windin’ that day.

There ain’t no official confirmation from SWIFT or Ripple that such a meal ever took place, nor a solemn proclamation of partnership. Still, the mere possibility keeps the town talkin’ and the ledger tickin’ like a clock that’s forgot to wind down.

Ripple To Move Forward With SWIFT?

Ripple paints itself as a tinkerer of technology meant to modernize cross‑border payments, a field long monopolized by SWIFT’s sturdy old horse. That swagger has sparked more than a fair share of good‑natured jabs between the two. Ripple’s brass, led by CEO Brad Garlinghouse, have spoke of snagging a respectable bite of the cross‑border pie that SWIFT has nibbled on for ages. In a tale told at a conference, Garlinghouse said Ripple aims to grab roughly 14% of SWIFT’s processing volume in the next five years, which sounds to some folks like a man aiming to run the river with a canoe he built last Tuesday.

Whispers abound that a private executive luncheon did take place in Miami between Ripple and SWIFT higher-ups. But this ain’t the first time social chatter has fluttered about such a union; social media has long dreamed up SIPs and XRP‑based liquidity, yet no grand partnership has ever hopped from the rafters into daylight.

Still, the conversation draws a crowd. For instance, business sage Patrick Bet-David publicly proclaims he’s buying XRP and figures a $100 price tag might be in sight if an SWIFT alliance ever happens.

Can SWIFT Integrate With Ripple?

Speaking at the 2025 XRPL Apex Conference, Garlinghouse said the XRP Ledger could muster about 14% of SWIFT’s volume within five years. But replacing or merely mingling with SWIFT is no small jig, given the company’s long and storied life in the finance parish. SWIFT started its odyssey in the 1970s and links thousands of banks across more than two hundred countries and territories.

Strangely enough, SWIFT has admitted that blockchain might have a toehold in the future of global finance. In September 2025, the outfit announced it would add a blockchain‑based shared ledger to its toolkit, which is a neat way of sayin’ they’re not burnin’ the bridges to old ways just yet.

Ripple, meanwhile, has been busy courting institutions and widening its footprint with acquisitions like Hidden Road and GTreasury, while roping in regional banking partners across Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. The aim, it would seem, is to broaden its reach into the hallowed halls of institutional finance and global liquidity corridors.

The notion of SWIFT and Ripple joinin’ hands isn’t as fanciful as a catfish dreamin’ of becoming a drum major. In theory, SWIFT could keep its standardized messaging while also rubbin’ elbows with distributed ledger technology for faster settlements.

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2026-02-13 08:41