Panos Mekras, the founder of DigitalGen Financial Services, recently highlighted how blockchain technology like XRP and Ripple posed a threat to traditional financial institutions. Mekras, a crypto expert who founded several crypto ventures, stated that XRP played a pivotal role in reducing the monopoly of big banks on the global financial landscape.
Mekras took to X (formerly Twitter) earlier today to demonstrate how XRP was disrupting the global finance space:
$XRP is one of the biggest threats to the big banks. 🧵1/15
— Panos 🔺 {X} 🪝 (@panosmek) August 26, 2023
Blockchain technology, crypto, and especially $XRP, are destroying the banks' monopoly and disintermediating them in many ways, but in this thread we will talk specifically about global payments.
According to Mekras, Ripple’s blockchain products were instrumental in highlighting new use cases for blockchain technology, specifically in the context of global payments. The XRP Ledger (XRPL) was a formidable contender when it came to cross-border settlements, with the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT) system being arguably the only mainstream alternative.
SWIFT leveraged its network of 10,000 financial institutions worldwide to enable overseas payments. However, Mekras told his followers that SWIFT’s dominance in the global payments space had taken a hit thanks to the efficient and cost-effective cross-border settlements demonstrated by XRP. XRP decentralized finance eliminated middlemen and the need for pre-funded liquidity.
Speaking on the issues in the global payments landscape, Mekras stated:
In a time when the global economy is more connected than ever, it’s shocking that there isn’t a complete payments network that allows seamless and efficient transfer of money around the world. The need for connection, accessibility, and interoperability has never been greater.
Mekras stated that the SWIFT system only offered an exchange of data while payments enabled by Ripple offered an exchange of value. According to the crypto expert, XRP leveraged blockchain technology to become a bridge-currency, thereby posing a considerable threat to big banks. He also indicated that Ripple’s success in such a short time may have prompted the hate campaign by mainstream media and the lawsuit by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
