Why Banks Back Linea but Resist XRP — And Why We’re Holding Both
The digital payments system is changing faster than most retail investors realize. For years, XRP has been a conviction hold for cross-border payments, settlement efficiency, and liquidity bridging. Ripple’s mission to solve SWIFT’s outdated infrastructure has always aligned with the needs of a world moving toward faster, cheaper, and more transparent payments. But the latest development — SWIFT testing Linea (ticker: LINEA) — signals that the competition is heating up. The truth is, it may not be an either/or scenario, which is why we’ve now added LINEA alongside XRP.
What SWIFT Is Testing with Linea
SWIFT, the global interbank messaging system connecting over 11,000 institutions, is exploring blockchain integration. Specifically, it is working with Linea, an Ethereum Layer 2 developed by Consensys. The test aims to migrate parts of SWIFT’s messaging infrastructure on-chain, enhancing speed, privacy, and compliance.
Why Linea? Because it leverages zero-knowledge proofs (zk-proofs) — advanced cryptography that allows transaction verification while keeping sensitive data private. For banks, which require both innovation and regulatory alignment, this is a major attraction.
Importantly, SWIFT is not yet moving money on Linea. Instead, it’s upgrading the messaging layer — the instructions banks send to each other before money changes hands. This is a modernization of existing rails, not a replacement.
Why Banks Fear XRP
Here’s the key: banks are cautious with XRP because it is designed to cut them out of the process. XRP eliminates intermediaries by combining messaging, settlement, and liquidity into one step. This threatens the correspondent banking model that has been profitable for decades. If XRP takes over, banks lose fees, control, and the float on nostro/vostro accounts.
By contrast, Linea does not threaten the banks’ business model. It modernizes SWIFT’s messaging layer without removing the banks themselves from the equation. That is why institutions are more comfortable experimenting with Linea — it feels like innovation without losing control.
Why We Hold XRP (Ticker: XRP)
XRP was purpose-built for cross-border value transfer. It eliminates intermediaries, moves money in 3–5 seconds, and costs just fractions of a cent per transaction. RippleNet’s partnerships with hundreds of financial institutions, plus growing regulatory clarity, make XRP the most direct challenger to the SWIFT system. But adoption is slower because banks see it as disruptive to their revenue streams.
Why We Acquired LINEA (Ticker: LINEA)
The fact that SWIFT is testing Linea with major banks (including BNP Paribas and BNY Mellon) cannot be ignored. This gives Linea institutional credibility at a very early stage. While Linea is not designed for payments specifically, it strengthens Ethereum’s institutional narrative and offers exposure to the banking sector’s cautious adoption of blockchain.
We added LINEA to our portfolio because global finance may evolve on two tracks:
Modernization of SWIFT via Linea — keeping legacy structures but improving them with privacy and blockchain efficiencies.
Replacement of SWIFT’s role with XRP — creating new rails for instant settlement and liquidity bridging.
Competing Yet Complementary
We view LINEA and XRP as competitors in some respects, but ultimately complementary bets for investors:
XRP (XRP): Best positioned for true disruption of payments, directly challenging SWIFT by cutting out intermediaries.
LINEA (LINEA): Best positioned for institutional adoption, helping SWIFT modernize without ceding control.
By holding both, we recognize that banks may choose to upgrade their existing system with Linea while others embrace the replacement model offered by XRP.
Our Strategy
For retail investors, the key is not to get locked into a one-chain mindset. The future of payments may not be decided by a single network. By holding both XRP and LINEA, we’re positioned to benefit if:
SWIFT and banks push forward with Linea’s zk-proof messaging rails.
Or if Ripple’s XRP gains traction as the actual liquidity and settlement layer of the future.
This dual-hold approach ensures we stay on top of the transformation either way.
Mind Bend Theory Takeaway: We now hold both XRP and LINEA. XRP remains our conviction play for true disruption, while LINEA acts as a hedge on institutional inertia and SWIFT’s cautious modernization. Banks may resist XRP out of fear, but that doesn’t erase its potential. Instead, it makes holding both XRP and LINEA the smartest way to cover all outcomes in the coming global payments revolution.