Here’s Why Bitcoin and Ethereum Can’t Compete with XRP in Global Payments

A prominent crypto sleuth has provided technical reasons why Bitcoin and Ethereum cannot compete with XRP in the global payments market.

It is no longer news that XRP has a reputation in cross-border payments, with several financial entities adopting the coin for this purpose.

In a recent X post, top crypto sleuth SMQKE highlighted this incredible feat, arguing that Bitcoin and Ethereum cannot compete with XRP in global payments.

‼️ WHY BTC AND ETH WILL NEVER COMPETE WITH XRP IN GLOBAL PAYMENTS ‼️

Scalability means how well a system can handle lots of transactions at the same time, quickly and without high costs. Banks need this because they process millions of payments every day that must be fast and… https://t.co/N5tjg8GZ64 pic.twitter.com/PnuiSqLZc1

— SMQKE (@SMQKEDQG) June 5, 2025

Bitcoin and Ethereum are Ill-Suited for Global Payments

According to SMQKE, the developers of Bitcoin and Ethereum did not design the coins to meet today’s payment demands, asserting that they lack scalability. The expert defined ‘scalability’ as the ability of a system to handle multiple transactions simultaneously, quickly, and at a lower cost.

In their view, global banks require systems that offer scalability as they process millions of payments daily. Notably, SMQKE suggested that Bitcoin and Ethereum process around 20 transactions per second, which limits their ability to meet the demands of global finance.

Since both networks are poorly scalable, users sometimes pay high transaction fees, with confirmation times stretching from minutes to hours.

SMQKE emphasized that Bitcoin and Ethereum are incompatible with modern payment infrastructure due to their high transaction fees and long confirmation times.

“That is why banks and institutions continue to exclude BTC and ETH from high-volume payment systems due to regulations,” SMQKE remarked.

XRP Satisfies Modern Payment Demands

However, the expert suggested that XRP was explicitly built for speed, scalability, and utility. For context, XRP’s underlying technology, XRP Ledger (XRPL), handles up to 1,500 transactions per second, with each costing less than a cent ($0.01).

Based on these features, SMQKE emphasized that XRP was designed for real-time payments and high-volume financial settlements.

Conclusively, the expert argued that while XRP was designed for modern day payments, Bitcoin and Ethereum were not. They highlighted XRP’s core design as the driving force behind Ripple’s integration into the real-world banking system.

XRP Recognized as Utility Token Under MiCA

Meanwhile, SMQKE’s recent commentary serves as a follow-up comment to their initial post about Bitcoin and Ethereum’s exclusion from the MiCA regulatory framework.

According to Mary-Elizabeth McMunn of Ireland’s Central Bank, Bitcoin and Ethereum fall outside the regulatory purview of MiCA as both assets have no identifiable issuers.

However, SMQKE indicated that XRP would be regulated as a utility token under the MiCA regulation. The expert provided documents confirming XRP’s utility, demonstrating that it meets the criteria via its use in cross-border payments and speculative trading.

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