Focusing when Bitcoin launched in 2009, it introduced the world to decentralized money. But by 2011, some early blockchain developers were already discussing its trade-offs—particularly slow transactions, high energy use, and limited scalability. XRP was born from that debate . According to a quote shared by crypto commentator Xaif on X in June 2025, Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen recalled the project’s founding intent: “In the beginning, we wanted to build a better Bitcoin… and we created XRP.” It wasn’t a rivalry, he said—it was a redesign. XRP Technical Starting Point The XRP Ledger (XRPL) was developed by engineers David Schwartz, Jed McCaleb, and Arthur Britto. They began working on it in 2011, aiming to create a faster, more scalable, and sustainable digital asset for payments compared to Bitcoin. The project was initially named “Ripple.” Bitcoin, whose blockchain can handle only around seven transactions per second, or ETH, which handles around 15, XRP’s blockchain can handle 1,500 transactions per second. XRP was launched in June 2012. While the technology was independent, Ripple Labs (originally OpenCoin) was founded shortly after to develop enterprise use cases based on it. Chris Larsen joined Ripple in 2012 as CEO. Under his leadership, the company focused on payments infrastructure. Instead of trying to replace the financial system, Ripple aimed to integrate with it, offering banks and financial institutions tools for real-time gross settlement and foreign exchange. XRP was designed as a bridge currency. It allowed value to move between two different fiat currencies instantly without requiring pre-funded nostro accounts. Products like xRapid and later On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) leveraged XRP’s speed and low transaction cost. According to Ripple’s Q1 2025 Markets Report, over 80% of its global remittance volume is now processed using ODL. The XRP Ledger processed over 170 million transactions in the first quarter alone. Beyond Payments: The XRPL in 2025 Today, XRP’s purpose goes beyond remittances. The XRP Ledger now supports Ethereum-compatible smart contracts via its EVM sidechain. It also enables pilot programs for tokenized assets, stablecoins, and even central bank digital currency (CBDC). According to data from XRPScan in June 2025, the number of XRP whale wallets holding over 1 million XRP reached a 12-year high of 2,708. This surge in whale activity, coupled with a sevenfold increase in daily active addresses, indicates growing investor confidence in XRP. XRP price rose 2.02% on Saturday, June 28, following Friday’s 1.8% gain, closing at $2.1865. The token outperformed the broader market, which gained 0.59%, lifting the total crypto market cap to $3.26 trillion. This philosophical difference continues to shape both assets. While Bitcoin remains a decentralized store of value and inflation hedge, XRP is positioned as a utility asset for institutional finance. Thirteen years after the XRP Ledger’s launch, that vision still drives the protocol’s evolution—and explains why it’s increasingly viewed not as a Bitcoin competitor, but as a complementary part of the blockchain ecosystem.
