Your Ripple Questions Answered!

Your Ripple Questions Answered!

Ripple is currently the third largest cryptocurrency in the whole world, with regards to market capitalisation. However; many experts have been arguing that Ripple is not actually a cryptocurrency at all. That said, regardless of whether or not it fits the traditional definition of cryptocurrency, it does not mean that does not have a use. We have answered some common questions to help people to realise the key features of XRP. Is it decentralised? No. In fact, this is one of the main criticisms that it faces, as decentralisation is a big deal for cryptocurrency enthusiasts. Many experts believe that XRP does not add anything new, and even that it does not actually have a clear purpose. The developers of Ripple though, very much argue the opposite. Despite the fact that XRP is in fact centralised, it is better than other cryptocurrencies for a number of different reasons; it is faster and more scalable, less expensive than others, and has an intrinsic value that puts them in front of others. The developers have argued that they do actually plan to decentralise XRP over time, with the CTO, Stefan Thomas even arguing that it will be more decentralised than the likes of Bitcoin in the future. Why is the relationship between Ripple and XRP very vague? A recent report has suggested that XRP might soon be considered a security by the SEC as it is not clearly defined, saying;

“While the coin doesn’t represent an ownership stake in Ripple, the concern is the close relationship might still lead regulators to deem XRP a security.”

Ripple simply does not see this as a problem though, as it does not directly influence the value of its cryptocurrency, despite the fact that it could benefit from this. The benefit, and many argue a clear purpose for Ripple is that it makes the financial products that are built on the platform faster and cheaper. Do banks have a reason to use XRP? Ripple sees itself as a partner for banks and other financial service providers; however critics argue that the company does not give these providers any reason to use XRP. They believe that XRP will fail to get adopted by the big companies as it is too volatile and risky. Of course, Ripple have fought back against these claims, and companies are already being encouraged to use Ripple. Chief cryptographer, David Schwartz, said;

“Now, say you’re a company like Seagate that pays out money all over the globe. If you have to make payments to five countries in our corridors, you’d rather hold one pile of XRP than five piles of different currencies…If that succeeds, it should massively increase the price of XRP.”
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