Who Owns XRP Ledger? Hint: It’s Not Ripple
XRP has always been subject to claims of centralization by Ripple. The payment company, however, has always rejected this claim, citing the open-source and decentralized nature of the XRP Ledger. Recent court documents have provided clarity on the confusion to clear doubts about XRP’s centralization.
Who Owns The XRP Ledger?
A federal judge in the United States recently rejected the Securities and Exchange Commission’s request for permission to pursue an interlocutory appeal on Ripple’s partial win. According to the ruling, the SEC did not give enough evidence to warrant a revision in the ruling.
Interestingly, court documents on the rejection seem to have cleared up confusion regarding Ripple, XRP, and the XRP Ledger. This confusion stems from the close affiliation between Ripple and XRP, as the payment company is the largest holder of the coin.
While Ripple created and originally developed the XRP Ledger, court documents show the XRP Ledger is an open, decentralized system that the payment company does not own or control.
The XRP Ledger code is open for developers and validators to build on, not Ripple alone. The SEC also failed to prove enough connection of the XRP Ledger to Ripple.
🤯🤯 This is what we call – CLARITY.
Today was a good day.#XRP #XRPCommunity #XRPHolders pic.twitter.com/iPMD7Lszge
— 𝟸𝟺𝙷𝚁𝚂𝙲𝚁𝚈𝙿𝚃𝙾 (@24hrscrypto1) October 4, 2023
“Ripple does not own the XRP Ledger, which is “based on open-source software; anyone can use the ledger, submit transactions, host a node to contribute to the validation of transactions, propose changes to the source code, or develop applications that run on the ledger,” court documents said.
Total crypto market cap currently at $1.06 trillion. Chart: TradingView.com
Although the ruling has clarified the confusion, all it has done is restate the position of the XRP community. It would seem at this point, that the regulator is one of the few who still believe that the XRP Ledger is controlled by Ripple. The SEC-Ripple lawsuit is now set for a trial scheduled for April 23, 2024.
Controversies And Innovation: Ripple’s Dynamic Year in Crypto
A similar accusation was recently brought against Ripple by some members of the crypto community. According to the allegation, recent changes in the XRPL contained a secret clause that makes “The BuyBack” of XRP possible by Ripple. However, this claim has since been dismissed.
Ripple has had a very eventful year, as the firm has been working hard to solidify its leadership position in the cryptocurrency sector by developing innovative payment solutions.
Ripple recently won awards at the Juniper Research’s Future Digital Awards for Fintech & Payments 2023 for its US Dollar-backed Palau Stablecoin on the XRP Ledger
Ripple was recently mentioned in the context of a potential relationship by the director of the Australian Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA). The FTA is the most influential organization in Australia’s international supply chain industry.
Featured image from Times Tabloid
