[Digital Today reporter Jinju Hong (홍진주)] U.S. President Donald Trump’s new fintech executive order has put the possibility of crypto firms gaining direct access to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s (Fed) payment system under official review.

On May 26 (local time), blockchain outlet Cryptopolitan reported that the move is drawing market attention as it intersects with the possibility of changes to Ripple and XRP’s payment structure.

The key issue is whether the Fed will open its master accounts and payment infrastructure to crypto firms. Until now, most fintech and crypto companies have been unable to connect directly to the Fed payments network and have processed transactions through partner or intermediary banks. The outlet reported that the executive order asks the Fed to re-examine whether this structure is limiting innovation in the digital asset industry.

The review is also expected to potentially include major crypto companies such as Coinbase, Circle Internet Group and Ripple. If these companies gain direct access to Fed payment services, their role and business scope within the U.S. financial system could also change significantly, according to observers.

Banks, however, have also raised concerns. They cite the risk that allowing non-traditional financial institutions to gain access to core payment networks could create new risks for financial stability and supervisory frameworks.

Ripple in particular is seen as facing a high likelihood of structural change. Ripple has promoted XRP as a liquidity asset used for international remittances and inter-institution settlement. The current global remittance system involves multiple intermediary banks, increasing costs and time, while Ripple has pursued a model to shorten the process through an XRP-based network.

If Ripple gains access to the Fed payment system, it could reduce its dependence on correspondent banking networks and potentially skip some settlement procedures. In that case, XRP network transaction processing, liquidity transfer structures and inter-institution payment costs could also change. The outlet said that if regulation is approved, use of XRP could expand in regulated cross-border finance.

The move also aligns with discussions on institutionalising crypto in the United States. The U.S. Senate Banking Committee on May 14 passed the CLARITY bill by 15 to 9 and sent it to the full Senate. The bill includes provisions on how to classify digital assets within the U.S. legal system and which assets will be subject to securities regulation and which will fall under oversight by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

The U.S. House of Representatives also passed its own digital asset bill last year. But talks have been delayed by differences over stablecoin revenue structures and the scope of oversight, and the outlet reported that the White House directly coordinated discussions between banks and the crypto industry.

The market views the Fed payments-access review as not merely a banking-services issue but a test of how far crypto firms may be brought into the regulated financial system. For Ripple and XRP in particular, analysts say it could become a variable that may shake the existing intermediary bank-centred international remittance structure.

At the same time, the industry is watching follow-up moves by the Fed and regulators, as the step could become a symbolic case showing how deeply other crypto firms can enter U.S. financial infrastructure.