In another important milestone for the adoption of crypto-coins, the US PNC will begin using RippleNet to process international payments for its customers.
Ripple made the announcement on September 19, stating that PNC's treasury management unit will use its xCurrent software solution to streamline international transactions for commercial bank clients in the country.
According to the initial reports, xCurrent will allow PNC customers to receive payments instantly, which will change the way companies address cash flow and account management. The software allows banks to communicate instantly to confirm payment before and after a transaction is initiated.
Turnaround
As a result, Ripple's price skyrocketed in the coming days, with gains of up to 15% in overall market capitalization.
On Friday, September 21, XRP switched from Ethereum to become the second-largest crypto-currency at market value, at around $ 23 billion.
Building Blocks
According to the initial reports, Ripple sees the move as a necessary first step for banks and financial institutions to eventually use xRapid - its liquidity product that uses Ripple's digital token, the XRP.
Ripple's senior vice president of product management, Asheesh Birla, says xCurrent is "a way to get your feet in the water."
These sentiments follow comments from Ripple's leading cryptographer, David Schwartz, who said in June that banks should not adopt blockchain systems to process international payments in the near future.
Schwartz cited concerns about privacy and scalability as a major concern for banks. Until there is a solution that completely meets those needs, the big banks are not likely to go all-in with Distributed Accounting (DLT) technology.
Ripple's xCurrent protocol is essentially an immutable interlocutor that allows instant settlement, which is an upgrade to today's payment networks. But, as Schwartz pointed out, it is not a distributed book.
With that being said, the PNC has joined several major financial institutions that have joined Ripple in several ways.
In August, Ripple expressed interest in invading the Chinese market in an effort to accelerate international payments.
October optimistic
Ripple expects to release a retail version of xRapid as early as October. The company had already partnered with Bittrex, Mexican Bitso and Philippine Coins.Ph to facilitate xRapid to move between XRP, US dollars, Mexican pesos and Filipinos.
Ripple's xRapid pilot project in May 2018 reportedly produced savings of up to 70 percent in transactions, as well as increased transaction speeds.
Justin Sun, founder of TRON, told the Cointelegraph that it envisages other banking institutions following in the footsteps of the PNC by adopting blockchain systems like RippleNet:
"The XRP peak shows the recognition of Ripple's protocol by PNC Bank. With Bill Clinton presenting the 2018 Swell, the blockchain is becoming mainstream. As Ripple's main representative in Greater China from 2014 to 2016 and a shareholder of Ripple, I am sure that financial institutions will adopt blockchain. "
Cointelegraph also spoke to Kieran Kelly, a long-term investor at Ripple, who believes that the move is a big step towards the adoption of Ripple:
"Ripple is adding one bank per week to the network and RippleNet is present in 40 countries and six continents. PNC, being the most recently announced bank, shows that Ripple is making huge progress globally toward adoption, offering cheaper, faster, and more transparent payments. "
As Kelly points out, RippleNet's speed is a compelling proponent of technology, which could accelerate international money transfers:
"The traditional financial sector is already implementing the blockchain as part of RippleNet and the considerable benefits will further boost adoption globally. Ripple gives banks the ability to ship frictionlessly in three seconds at little cost over the current format - that is, SWIFT - which takes three to four days. Banks save 60% to 70% with Ripple. "
Others were not so confident about the Ripple Value Ripple this week. A quick look at Twitter has resulted in some interesting readings as some users have offered more skeptical views about the value of crypto.
Nicholas Merten, the founder of YouTube's Datadash channel, suggested that the increase in value was mainly due to the fact that traders - not big investors - enter the market: