- Ripple has secured over 300 bank partnerships in 13 years but still reports daily on‑chain volume far below the billions.
- Institutions cite off‑chain liquidity, volatility concerns and regulatory controls as key factors in slow on‑chain adoption.
Ripple has cultivated more than 300 partnerships with banks worldwide yet records daily on‑chain transaction volumes well below industry expectations.
"Ripple has 300+ bank partnerships, but after 13 years, shouldn't there be billions in daily on-chain volume?"
I think there are a number of reasons why institutions have historically preferred to use digital assets off chain rather than on chain. I think we're close to changing…
— David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) July 30, 2025
Institutions Cite Off‑Chain Liquidity and Permissioned Domains Awaiting Deployment
Industry sources say that many financial institutions continue to favor off‑chain digital asset corridors for cross‑border payments. They argue that established off‑chain rails offer predictable liquidity and familiar settlement processes.
Permissioned domains on the XRP Ledger could enable regulated participants to vet liquidity providers but remain in pilot phases. Ripple executives acknowledge that until those features are fully live, concerns over compliance and counterparty risk will limit on‑chain usage.
Payments through the XRPL DEX are not yet broadly enabled for institutions because there is no mechanism to guarantee that liquidity pools are free of illicit actors. Ripple is testing domain verification to address that gap.
Market participants expect that permissioned domain functionality, once released later this year, should unlock higher on‑chain throughput.
Volatility, Bridge Currency Dynamics and Stablecoin Competition Shape Demand
Some clients question why they would use XRP over stablecoins given price fluctuations. Proponents argue that volatility can offer upside value that offsets downside risk over time.
As a bridge currency, XRP requires holders to maintain balances locally to facilitate immediate transactions. Institutions dominant in cross‑currency payments may prefer holding a single bridge asset rather than multiple stablecoins ahead of on‑chain swaps.
Looking ahead, if a single stablecoin were to dominate globally, it could supplant the need for separate bridge tokens. Yet industry experts doubt any one stablecoin can maintain cross‑jurisdictional stability given legal and regulatory ties to specific fiat currencies.
Wow David. What incredible replies.
I always wondered about why ripple didn’t use the DEX for payments but this response I did not contemplate👇but Ripple could use it couldn’t it. Just with a lot of regulatory problems.
Even Ripple can't use the XRPL DEX for payments yet… https://t.co/okm5nKbJCm
— bill morgan (@Belisarius2020) July 30, 2025
In a multi‑stablecoin environment, an independent bridge asset like XRP may remain necessary for exotic token pairs and emerging real‑world asset tokenization projects.
Major asset managers and tokenization platforms are assessing the XRP Ledger’s interoperability rather than building bespoke chains. They point to the benefits of cross‑chain portability and the network effects of existing liquidity corridors.
Legal and geopolitical considerations also influence ledger choice. Ripple’s on‑chain network is neutral by design and governed by an international validator set.
Enterprise solutions, however, are operated through regionally licensed entities to comply with local regulations, ensuring the network can serve diverse corridors without central control.
As of now, XRP is trading at 3.09 USD, down 0.07000 USD (‑0.02215 %) over the last 24 hours.
