Hfe is not the only parameter to be considered for switching. There are the various junction capacitances that affect both switching speed and RF performance. If a BJT is in hard saturation then its much harder to turn it OFF and this again affects speed. So additional means is needed to bring it out of saturation as quickly as possible or even not allowing it to saturate in the first place (as in ECL).
That said for general purpose use as long as the BJT has a Ft of 1 MHz it can be used for switching. hfe determines how much base drive is needed to switch, not necessarily how fast it can switch.