While the Stellar network may have experienced a network crash in 2014, Ripple denied that there is a design flaw in their consensus process.
Staying Ahead in the Game
To be sure, SWIFT is not sitting still in the face of challenges. It has rolled out various initiatives such as a «stop and recall» service for participants the ability to recall payments made fraudulently, or payments made by mistake on its gpi network. Without the gpi, recalling a payment could take days, SWIFT said.
It is also looking to introduce an «instant» cross-border payment service in Singapore, Thailand, Australia, and China. By tapping on local payment networks, it hopes to drastically reduce the time for cross-border transaction. «We are expecting live transactions by end of the year, with rules in place,» SWIFT payment head Michael Moon told finews.asia.
Lastly, it is screening the market and exploring solutions with fintech companies. «One of the solutions we came up with is a request for payment service, rather than a push payment», Moon said.
Crypto Conversion a Draw?
Although SWIFT is «currency agnostic», SWIFT's Moon sounded dismissive on the use of cryptocurrencies as a means to store and exchange value. «Digital currencies are not cryptocurrencies, you cannot just buy a Coke with a bitcoin,» he said.
Despite his doubts, the ability to convert and carry cryptocurrencies on new payment protocols have attracted the attention of big players on Ripplenet and Lightyear. In January this year, money-transfer service MoneyGram International partnered with Ripple.
Users may be quick to point out that the cryptocurrencies XRP and XLM are not as widely owned as fiat currencies, so that could be a hurdle. However, the new networks already offers convertibility between fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies.
Partnerships with Big Players
Under the partnership, MoneyGram could effectively pilot the use of XRP as an intermediary currency when moving funds across borders. For example, sending money between the U.S. and Singapore could occur smoothly and within seconds if those funds were converted from U.S. dollars to XRP, and then from XRP into Singapore dollars.
