ING and BNP Paribas have reportedly conducted confidential evaluations of the XRP Ledger (XRPL) as a potential settlement layer, according to former City of London banker Lord Belgrave. Internal documents allegedly reveal that XRPL outperformed other alternatives in terms of speed and efficiency. The banks' assessments included modeling XRP as a bridge asset in cross-border payment systems, emphasizing its benefits in liquidity and operational cost structures.