Aah Ripple! This cryptocurrency suffers from a terrible reputation. And yet, this project is probably one of the world's most advanced cryptocurrency. The promise is not very attractive even if the stakes are huge: make international payments inexpensively reliable and ultra fast. However, they seem to move forward in this direction, as shown by this new partnership with the American giant, American Express (AmEx).
RippleNet: the instant payment network
RippleNet, which already has more than 100 members, is now joined by American Express (AmEx), which will use the network to send B2B payments to the UK. Currently, using Swift's international payment networks, bank transactions now take 1-2 days with Swift. Ripple solves a problem of size: make payments in a few seconds, which it has already managed to do several times.
Ripple is not the only company to take this direction. Swift has joined the Hyperledger consortium to build its own system on a blockchain, and a rising tide of crypto startups have the same goal. For example, Stellar, co-founded by former Ripple CEO Jed McCaleb, has teamed up with IBM. However, a former Swift board member, Treacher, commented on the news, highlighting Ripple's lead through the partnership with American Express:
"Previously AmEx had to send Swift messages to banks to request payment. AmEx is now connected directly to the banks using Ripple's cryptocurrency, so that the movement of the value occurs immediately. "
After Sweden, Ripple connects the United Kingdom to the United States
Ripple recently established a bridge between Europe and the United States through his work with the Swedish bank SEB, which revealed at the end of last year its intention to connect Stockholm to New York using Ripple. Treacher said the SEB platform has already traded $ 630 million since its launch in the second quarter of this year.
The corridor of this new partnership will connect AmEx customers in the United States in US dollars to Santander UK bank accounts in pounds sterling through the Ripple blockchain. This payment channel could prove to be a key change factor for international payments between the United States and the United Kingdom, especially if the two countries enter into a free trade agreement after the exit of Great Britain of the European Union. José Luis Calderón, the global manager of banking operations in Santander, said:
"This partnership opens a new channel between the United States and the United Kingdom and presents an important opportunity for payments worldwide. Collaboration with forward-thinking companies has enabled us to provide this state-of-the-art, secure and frictionless payment solution, and extend our Simple, Personal, Fair philosophy to American Express and their customers. "
A win for Ripple recognized by the market
The announcement is a great victory for Ripple, who faces stiff competition from Swift and Stellar. The market nevertheless seems to have appreciated the news with a price increase of more than 30% and a sharp increase in the volume of exchange:
