Ripple Joins BIS Task Force for Cross-Border Payments

Enterprise blockchain and crypto solutions provider Ripple is among the members of a cross-border payments task force recently formed by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).

As part of the cross-border payments interoperability and extension task force, Ripple will work with other organizations, including Mastercard and SWIFT, in fulfilling BIS’ goal to “enhance cross-border payments and meet the quantitative targets for cross-border payments endorsed by the G20,” Cointelegraph reported Thursday (Aug. 10).

To that end, BIS will be working to improve access to payment systems, extend operating hours of payments systems and create links between different payment systems, according to the report.

BIS said that improvements to payment systems require global coordination and cooperation between stakeholders in both the public and private sectors.

Cross-border transactions are growing rapidly, thanks to digital transformations and new international settlement rails, but a host of international payment frustrations and reconciliation frictions still exist.

PYMNTS research has found that just 23% of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) found that their current cross-border payment solutions are very or extremely satisfactory.

In addition, 27% of SMBs see the complexity of cross-border payments as a hindrance to their ability to grow, according to “International B2B Payments: A Guide for Entrepreneurs and Digital Businesses,” a PYMNTS and Payoneer collaboration.

The report also found that 38% of SMBs reported increased cross-border payments sent or received. This is driven by the fact that local entrepreneurs can now develop a clientele worldwide as easily as they can within their own cities.

Blockchain and digital asset technology promise faster, more affordable, transparent payment methods, as well as the ability to offer new financial services to customers and tap into new revenue streams, and they will underpin the future of financial infrastructure, Aaron Sears, managing director of the Americas at Ripple, told PYMNTS in an interview posted in June.

Nowhere is this truer than within the $156 trillion cross-border payments market, Sears said at the time.

“The primary pain points are around speed, reliability, transparency and cost,” Sears said.

With blockchain and crypto-enabled payments, on the other hand, value is transferred instantaneously, enabling real-time settlement and payout, Sears said. Cross-border payments powered by these technologies can be made on demand, 24/7/365.