At the Paris Blockchain Week 2026, Markus Infanger, one of Ripple’s top product executives, addressed the key obstacles preventing major financial institutions from moving significant sums onto blockchain networks. Despite years of technological advancements and increasing interest in the sector, Infanger explained that most big banks and payment companies remain highly cautious about transferring large-scale funds using blockchain infrastructure.
Main concern for banks: Trust and scale
Infanger pointed out that while traditional financial institutions have tested blockchain-powered payment systems in select pilot projects and specific regions, reservations persist when it comes to moving substantial amounts—sometimes exceeding $1 billion in a single transaction. He emphasized that these organizations expect complete reliability and flawless operation when dealing with transactions involving billions of dollars.
For many banks and payment providers, legacy financial systems may be inefficient and cumbersome at times, but they remain deeply trusted mechanisms subjected to strict regulation. Consequently, the gradual pace of migrating from established systems to blockchain solutions can largely be attributed to the time it takes to build new foundations of trust around these innovations.
“We often hear that the old system is reliable,” Infanger noted, highlighting a widespread concern in traditional finance circles.
Institutional, not technical, barriers loom largest
Even though banks now offer their customers modern, digital interfaces, Infanger stressed that the fundamental back-end infrastructure behind those transactions often dates back to the pre-internet era. As a consequence, it is estimated that between $3 trillion and $5 trillion in global financial flows are effectively locked up each year due to credit risk, settlement delays, and the need for liquidity buffers.
These kinds of structural inefficiencies are not purely technical issues; they also represent costs arising directly from the way the traditional system operates.
Ripple and the industry’s new roadmap
Ripple’s medium and long-term strategy is to create a next-generation settlement layer on the XRP Ledger that allows instant, low-cost cross-border payments. Yet, as Infanger underscored, true scalability is about more than just transaction speed and fees—it fundamentally depends on whether financial institutions can fully trust these new systems when moving large volumes under tight regulatory scrutiny.
Rather than seeking a complete replacement of legacy and modern technologies, Ripple is increasingly focusing on interoperability. The goal is to build bridges between conventional financial networks and blockchain-based infrastructure, enabling both systems to work together in harmony.
This approach is not unique to Ripple, but instead reflects a broader industry trend. The prevailing expectation is that global payment networks will evolve through gradual convergence, with blockchain technology serving as a complementary tool to support the trillions of dollars already flowing through existing systems.
The central takeaway from the Paris event is clear: while blockchain infrastructure from players like Ripple may be technically ready, the deciding factor remains the ability to establish true institutional trust.
