Does Ripple really pose a threat to traditional banks?
The thesis that Ripple is no longer a 'payments company' but is starting to build a full-fledged banking infrastructure is increasingly appearing in the XRP community.
In December 2025, Vincent Van Code pointed out that Ripple could hit long-standing sources of revenue for banks:
treasury operations, money transfers, and custodial services.
According to him, today Ripple already has three key elements that were previously lacking:
technology, regulations, and capital.
What did Ripple do in 2025?
• acquisition of Hidden Road for 1.25 billion USD (now Ripple Prime, ~3 trillion USD in annual volume)
• purchase of Rail – a stablecoin payment platform
• acquisition of GTreasury for 1 billion USD
• joining Palisade to the ecosystem
• obtaining conditional approval for banking operations
All of this has significantly changed the narrative around Ripple. It is increasingly talked about as a potential competitor to traditional financial institutions rather than a payments company.
What could this mean for the price of XRP?
Google Gemini, analyzing the topic from the perspective of global liquidity rather than speculation, indicated several scenarios:
• moderate scenario (5 years): 12.50–18 USD
in line with the Standard Chartered forecast for 2028
• optimistic scenario (approx. 10% of global settlements): 25–50 USD
• very ambitious scenario: above 100 USD, if XRP were to become a global settlement standard
Gemini emphasizes, however, that liquidity and adoption remain key, and threats include:
stablecoins (including RLUSD), pressure from central banks, and new regulations like the US GENIUS Act.
Conclusion:
Ripple clearly aims higher than ever before.
Will it actually threaten banks? The market does not yet know.
But one thing is certain: it is no longer a small player in transfers.