SWIFT, the global bank payment network, plans to start testing its GPI Link payment standard through the Corda platform of R3. SWIFT CEO Gottfried Leibbrandt said that integration is currently a proof of concept. The integration will allow the R3 blockchain software company to link to GPI (Global Payments Innovation) from its platform.
He added that SWIFT would officially announce its plans for a proof of concept later on Wednesday. Leibbrandt spoke in a joint panel with Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple for the first time. Ripple has referred to itself as a blockchain competitor to SWIFT’s great global inter-bank network. SWIFT has 10,000 banks in its network. In 2018, the network participated in multiple blockchain pilot projects. However, it has not yet substantially restructured its well-known bank transfer architecture.
Gottfried told the Paris Panel that:
“Our new GPI platform is extremely interoperable and open, and we have always had links to other networks. Later, we announced a Proof-of-Concept with R3 blockchain in the store, where you can instigate a payment on the trading platform, and then move on to GPI. Therefore, we are exploring interconnectivity with many things. ”
The R3 platform
According to a press release from SWIFT, people using the R3 platform can authorize payments through GPI Link. User banks can now settle GPI payments. Once completed, the GPI link will report all credit confirmation to the trading platforms. The proof of concept will expand over time to support many other DLT, non-DLT and e-commerce trading platforms. The SWIFT GPI strives to streamline and improve the efficiency of cross-border payments. As the service continued to expand in 2018, commentators suggested that it was triggered by competition from the blockchain sector.
The R3 platform has experienced rapid growth in recent years. However, there have also been several setbacks along the way. R3 and Ripple have some history between them. As we informed previously, they had participated in almost a year of legal battle that was resolved in an undisclosed agreement.
R3 seems to be the first winner in the new competition with Ripple. Recently, the Dutch international bank ING signed a 5-year contract with R3 that allows the bank to access the commercial blockchain platform of R3.
R3 Vs Ripple
As we reported earlier, Ripple had said that they would take over SWIFT on a daily basis. At that time, SWIFT expressed doubt about whether blockchain or any other DLT platform could operate at scale. The developers believed that scaling would result in an escalation of complexities.
While Ripple was struggling to take over the systems of global financial institutions, the New Corda Settler application of R3 was launched. As we previously published, this application facilitates traditional payments based on the chain of blocks for the payment obligations admitted in the platform of the Corda block chain. The R3 application is gaining more user base than Ripple, as it supports many digital currencies, including XRP.
R3 said that XRP is the first internationally recognized cryptocurrency that is compatible with Settler. The move took the Corda and XRP ecosystems to a closer alignment, an approach since Ripple and R3 previously blocked the horns in a legal dispute.
Adoption r3
After recently launching its Corda network, R3 has so far gathered at least 300 partners from multiple industries. Both public and private partners pledged to collaborate in the development of Corda Enterprise, a business-oriented subsidiary of Corda and R3. Corda has enjoyed a wave of adoption news with its Euro debt solution used by a triad of German-French-Dutch banks to execute a live commercial paper transaction.
In addition, SBI Holdings of Japan announced its partnership with R3 to advance the use of Corda in Asia. Five leading banks and 26 French companies completed a Know Your Customer (KYC) test with Corda.
Also published on Medium.