Ripple (XRP) is not only the 6th largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization; it is also the first-mover in terms of cross-border payment solutions.
This article takes an in-depth look at Ripple, its core areas of business, and – most importantly for prospective investors – the advantages and disadvantages which can answer the question: Should I buy Ripple?
After being heckled down by the United States Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) on December 21 2020 for selling the XRP token as an unregistered security, Ripple plunged from the opening day trading price of $0.556 to close December 31 2020 with a price of $0.2198. In the process, XRP lost 60.4676% of its price in the space of just ten days.
Several financial analysts started forecasting the worst for Ripple (XRP), with most predicting a bottoming out for the crypto trading asset. Others remained bullish about the prospects of the novel token on the exchange market since it relies on its business solutions and not merely speculation to determine its overall valuation.
The year 2021 was great for investors, especially HODLers. With Bitcoin (BTC) leading the way, several altcoins followed.
On April 6 2021, Ripple (XRP) surprised all experts by trading above the $1 mark for the first time since 2018 and in the process reached a high of $1.70.
Ripple (XRP) unlike Litecoin (LTC), Bitcoin (BTC), Dogecoin (DOGE), Dash (DASH) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) which only functions as either a transactional currency that can be used for settling payments on online retail stores or a store of value, Ripple transcends the mere facade of a cryptocurrency being used to send and receive payments over the internet.
Ripple (XRP) unlike Binance (BNB), Ethereum (ETH), Tron (TRX) and Cardano (ADA) which provides decentralized finance (DeFi) solutions in addition to being used as a transactional currency, Ripple is decentralized but centralized and targets real world institutions for its adoption as a cross-border payment solution.
Is Ripple a great investment? Will the digital asset continue to soar in 2022 and beyond? Will Ripple hit $2? Will the cross-border payment solutions technology succumb to the pressures of the Security and Exchanges Commission (SEC) which will see the cryptocurrency’s run as the king of international remittance solutions come to an unfortunate end?
Most importantly for prospective investors sold into the crypto finance space – what are the pros and cons of investing in Ripple which can better help answer the question: Should I buy XRP?
Contents:
Ripple (XRP) Cryptocurrency at a Glance
What Are Experts Saying About Ripple?
The Bottom Line – Should You Invest In Ripple?
Ripple (XRP) Cryptocurrency At A Glance
Ripple is a currency exchange, real-time gross settlement system and remittance network. Ripple is built on a distributed open source protocol that supports tokens representing cryptocurrency, commodities, fiat currencies and other units of value such as mobile minutes or frequent flier miles.
Its native cryptocurrency is XRP and its network is called RippleNet (this is a digital payment network that is on top of the XRP Ledger distributed database).
Ryan Fugger, a software developer, originator of the credit network paper of Ripple, initial coin offering advisor and early-phase consultant, conceived the idea of a secure payment option to several members of an online community as far back as 2004.
This is a time when the internet boom started to take shape after the success of PayPal Inc. (PYPL) and other digital companies. Ripplepay.com was the first iteration of Ryan’s idea of a payment system in 2004. The main reason for the creation of the website at the time was to extend credit lines to his friends and family.
After his idea of how a payment solution should be received less attention as a result of having several projects in the pipeline, the introduction of blockchain and its possibilities of cryptocurrency by the anonymous man with the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto in 2008 with Bitcoin (BTC) as a novel token opened a door for Ripple.
Programmer and entrepreneur Jed McCaleb, using Satoshi Nakamoto’s template, began the development of a cryptocurrency that would not mirror Bitcoin’s use of blockchain which results in the process of mining. Instead, Jed McCaleb focused on a system whereby all the transactions would be verified by an agreement among all the members of the network.
Jed McCaleb and Chris Larsen, a business executive and angel investor, approached Ryan Fugger with their idea of how a payment system and digital currency should function. Ryan Fugger agreed to the request and Jed McCaleb and Chris Larsen co-founded OpenCoin in September 2012 which was renamed a year later on September 26 2013 as Ripple Labs, Inc.
On 29th January 2015, Ripple was first traded on cryptocurrency exchanges, according to CoinTelegraph. Since that time, fans of Ripple have been through great rallies and sharp recessions. Such unpredictability on the part of the performance of the digital asset brought gains and losses in a short period of time and certified cryptocurrencies overall as VOLATILE assets.
Ripple (XRP) opened on the 29th day of January 2015 at a price of $0.01570 with a paltry $17 in trade volume.
On October 6, 2015, Ripple (XRP) announced the introduction of the INTERLEDGER PROTOCOL for efficiency across payment networks. With this, it was reported by Ripple digital address (ripple.com) that several banks believe Ripple changed the game, “By providing banks the ability to transact directly, instantly and with certainty”.
A huge milestone was accomplished as Ripple established an international company called SBI Ripple Asia on 18th May 2016.
SBI Ripple Asia has a primary purpose of using RippleNet technology to help financial institutions and money transfer service operators in South Korea, Japan and certain Southeast Asian countries.
The year 2017 brought a milestone partnership to Ripple as a company. Ripple announced on 10th October that over one hundred clients have signed up to its blockchain network, RippleNet.
Financial Corporations announced were big-name clients such as Standard Chartered, UniCredit, Santander and Union Bank of Switzerland (USB). Cuallix (a non-financial services institution with more than 25 years of experience in the payments industry) was the first company to employ Ripple’s novel token (XRP) in its business operations.
Speaking on the partnerships and why it is important for Ripple to join the competition, CEO of Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse told CNBC that “The global payments industry really has been ruled by an oligopoly, led by players like JPMorgan and Citi”.
Ripple began October at a price of $0.2031 and ended 2017 on December 31 rallying to a price of $2.0500. In the process, XRP gained 32,439.7% in price which was heavily bolstered by the rally of parent crypto Bitcoin (BTC) and positive market sentiments on the whole crypto finance space.
China banned all activities associated with cryptocurrencies in 2017 which was followed by Japan’s ban in 2018. After a crypto boom in 2017, Ripple carried on strongly into 2018. After opening on the 1st day of January 2018 at a trading price of $2.1900, Ripple reached an all-time high of $3.84 on 4th January 2018.
As a trader or investor, you should know that the primary driver of all cryptocurrencies is the parent crypto Bitcoin (BTC). Ripple followed BTCs Bull Run in 2017 and plunged heavily in 2018 by following the same bearish course earlier outlined by the digital gold.
XRP closed 2018 exchanging hands for $0.3709. XRP decreased by as much as 90.3411% and brought questions as to its ability to become resistant in the market.
Aside from the financial market recovery for cryptocurrencies in 2019, Ripple’s price was driven by the announcement of RippleNet surpassing two hundred customers globally on 8th January 2019. Thirteen (13) companies signed up to RippleNet (the company’s payment network). The companies include Rendimento, Euro Exim Finance, Olympia Trust Company, WorldCom Finance, Pontual/USEND, JNFX, Ahli Bank of Kuwait, BFC Bahrain, GMT, ConnectPay, Transpaygo, SendFriend and FTCS.
Four of the institutions, Euro Exim Bank, Transpaygo, JNFX and SendFriend pointed out that “They will leverage the digital asset (XRP) to source liquidity on-demand when sending payments on behalf of their customers”. In the process, Ripple’s solution will allow the financial institutions to make faster, lower cost of payments than they can through the traditional correspondent banking system.
After launching its University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI) in June 2018, Ripple’s education program initially supported seventeen universities around the world. The primary purpose of the program is to help students at the various institutions progress their study of blockchain, financial technology (FinTech) and digital assets.
In February 2019, the University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI) was expanded and 11 universities were added to help expand the possibilities of blockchain. In July 2019, 4 more universities were added to take the total to 32 universities supported in 14 countries.
In June 2019, international remittance giant, MoneyGram announced a partnership with Ripple. Ripple (XRP) will play a primary function of becoming MoneyGram’s key partner for cross-border settlements.
The year 2020 started well for Bitcoin (BTC) and this affected the price patterns of most altcoins which included Ripple (XRP). Ripple traded for a coin at $0.1874 on 1st January 2020 and surprisingly, when the coronavirus pandemic reached its peak in the months of March and April where the financial markets collapsed, Ripple (XRP) surpassed all odds and maintained its price.
This was due to new partnerships formed which strengthened the position of Ripple in such a unique market it identified for itself. Azimo (a European money transfer service) partnered with Ripple to tap from its blockchain in order to process transactions for its remittance corridor in the Philippines.
In June 2020, it was reported by the Daily HODL that Ripple has surpassed 350 financial institutions as partners which are using the technology of the cross-border payment solutions company. Most of these new partners used the novel token (XRP) to power international remittances.
Everything was going on well for Ripple until December 21, 2020, when the Security and Exchanges Commission (SEC) filed a case against the company for trading XRP as an unregistered security.
XRP closed December 20 at $0.5145 and after the announcement, several exchanges decided to delist the digital asset from their platforms and selling pressure pulled the price back to $0.2379. In the process, the crypto trading asset lost 53.7609% of its value in 10 days after the announcement but gained 26.9477% when considering its trading price from the start to the end of the year.
The year 2021 was different. Despite an uncertain future to look up to at the end of 2020 and a strong case mounting every day as to what is going to happen to the project, Ripple has exceeded expectations having returned more than 12,600% since the time of its launch and 250% in 2021.
Read More: A Historical Look At Ripple (XRP) Price: 2012-2021
Crypto asset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
Pros Of Buying Ripple
The drivers or advantages of a crypto trading asset play a key role in the future potential of an asset. There are many pros of investing in XRP which can answer the question, does XRP have a future?
✅ Ripple Depends On Its Payment Solutions and NOT Mere Market Speculation
When Ripple first got into the decentralized finance space in 2012 as OpenCoin before rebranding to Ripple in 2013, it saw several possibilities which at the time were not the focus of other software developers. Most of them were focused on creating cryptocurrencies to rival parent crypto and that was how Litecoin (LTC), Dash (DASH) and Dogecoin (DOGE) came into the space.
There are others such as Vitalik Buterin (Ethereum), Justin Sun (Tron) and Charles Hoskinson (Cardano) who saw other possibilities such as smart contracts in blockchain which has created another sector called decentralized finance (DeFi) with protocols and applications (DAPPS). More crypto companies aside from these 3 smart contract networks have joined the market making it saturated.
Ripple (XRP) has so far been unique and as the first mover of cross-border payments, has a single strong rival in Stellar Lumens (XLM).
With the introduction of On-demand Liquidity (ODL), RippleNet is able to deliver instant cross-border payments without the need for PRE-FUNDING. On-demand Liquidity (ODL) works in a process where customers who use the network (Ripple Net) can use XRP (cryptocurrency) to bridge two currencies in a space of 3 seconds. This ensures that payments are quickly sent and received in their respective local currencies on either side of a transaction.
With XRP trading a little below or above $1, ODL is extremely affordable and has been invaluable to the transaction patterns of several financial institutions and other businesses.
Michael A. Brooks is the founder and CEO of goLance (an outsourcing online portal for hiring freelancers). Through ODL, Michael has been able to create an outsourcing platform where clients bear no cost posting jobs. The freelancers who apply and complete tasks are charged low service fees and to top it all, they receive payments within a short notice due to the fast processing times of Ripple’s technology.
The CEO pointed out that “The XRP ledger never sleeps, it’s for the future of work where money does not sleep and does not close the door when banks do. It has made it easy to hire freelancers and more importantly, pay them their due as a result of low service fees in a timely manner”.
Inasmuch as parent crypto (BTC) thrives on its first mover advantage which has seen it serve as a store of value and a transactional currency, Ripple (XRP) did not take that path. This is because the company may have had to rely on institutional interest through investments and hardcore decentralized finance fans to determine its price. Ripple chose a path of being decentralized but focused on serving and improving the blockchain technology of centralized financial institutions.
Check Out: Will XRP Make Me Rich?
✅ Ripple Has Partnered With And Has Several Use Cases
Cryptocurrency projects such as Cardano (ADA) have a huge potential of disrupting the entire decentralized finance (DeFi) market including cross-border payments as a result of the potency of its project. Unfortunately, Charles Hoskinson’s project does not have a single strong use case that can cement its potential as a threat to Ethereum (ETH) as first mover in DeFi and Ripple (XRP) with its payments solutions.
Ripple has forged successful partnerships over the years and a few are being highlighted.
REMITR (an alternative wire transfer business) which operates within and outside the confines of its headquarters in Canada had an objective of connecting with new business partners as well as reaching more customers through its services.
Ripple gave them standardized accessibility to a large pool of new partners they can trust. In two weeks, RippleNet (Network) helped REMITR open up 3 new markets.
Kanchan Kumar serves as the CEO and Co-Founder of REMITR, speaking on the partnership, he pointed out that “RippleNet has given us access to a wider, trusted network of partners who could move as quickly as we do to connect and provide services in new regions”.
Transfer Go (UK based money transfer service which operates in 47 countries in 22 currencies) had an objective of moving money globally in an easy and simple process which can be equated to the sending of a text message.
The network (RippleNet) has several features which allow the money transfer service to integrate with local and financial institutions globally in an efficient manner and see a reduction in the processing time from days to just minutes. Ripple (XRP) has provided invaluable assistance to Transfer Go and the company looks forward to accepting customers from Africa, Southeast Asia and America after having great success in India.
NIUM (a cross-border payments company) had a goal of differentiating themselves from competitors in a saturated marketplace where everyone wants to take advantage of Decentralized Finance (DeFi).
To enhance the payment experience of its users, Ripple allowed Nium to leverage its advanced technology to help with the fast processing of real-time transactions.
XendPay (a low-cost online money transfer service provider in the United Kingdom) had a goal of opening new markets where payments could be received in local currencies while enhancing the company’s reputation as one which provides services at a low cost.
Developing a partnership with RippleNet has significantly increased not only the company’s transaction volume but the rate of new customers as well.
After the Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) case where several forecasters and analysts felt Ripple was done, the digital asset has been making more partnerships than ever before.
Evidently, CEO of Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse, told CNN that “The good news for Ripple is we have signed over 20 new financial institutions around the world as customers since the SEC filed their lawsuit and I think we are going to see the network grow very rapidly in non-US customers”.
In March 2021, Ripple (XRP) announced that it has acquired 40% stake in TRANGLO (Asia’s leading cross-border payments specialist). TRANGLO will “Play a critical role in supporting existing corridors – such as the Philippines – and introducing new On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) corridors within its current network.
Speaking on this partnership, CEO Jacky Lee pointed out that “TRANGLO has always prided itself on making cross-border transactions faster, cheaper and more secure. By partnering closely with Ripple and introducing On-Demand Liquidity to new markets, we aim to further that ambition to provide accessible and equitable financial services to the masses”.
In the third week of March, another strong candidate was added to the Ripple family. Brooks Entwistle will serve as the managing director of Ripple’s operations in Southeast Asia after formerly serving as an executive at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) and Uber Technologies (UBER).
With more established financial institutions and start-ups partnering up with Ripple to be able use its sophisticated technology to enhance their products, Ripple will continue to soar in the years to come.
✅ Ripple Has Surpassed An Important Milestone
Several sceptics have started asking questions as to what is driving Ripple’s price. It's not entirely American as the cross-border payments network seems to have found a new fanbase elsewhere.
On 6th April 2021, Ripple (XRP), rose above the $1 price milestone for the first time since January 2018, despite the SEC case hanging around its neck. The main factors driving the digital asset’s price support are a community of loyal and devoted cryptocurrency traders (XRP army).
According to Ben Powers of Coindesk, the SEC can take action, but these are currencies that go beyond the reach of the United States.
Although several crypto exchanges such as BinanceUS, Bittrex, Crypto Wallet, Swipe, Crypto.com and CrossTower have delisted XRP, this has done nothing to the maintenance and momentum of XRPs price.
In the lead up to XRP crossing $1, most of the trading activity recorded came from Asia-oriented exchanges. Two of the top five exchanges HBTC and VCC were Singapore-based while BIDESK is in Australia. BINANCE, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, does not fall under the purview of US regulations since it has an Office in Malta.
This validates Ripple’s appeal to the general public as being censorship-resistant, one that is impossible for governments to control. So far, the army of XRP has demonstrated that no one can dissuade their investment interest in the asset, not even the most powerful SEC of the United States.
Don't Miss: Ripple Price Predictions
✅ Ripple Is Venturing Into Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)
In March 2021, Ripple announced on its website in an article titled Ripple Pilots a Private Ledger for Central Banks Launching CBDCs. Ripple has positioned itself in a way where its technology solutions would provide central banks with more flexible, controlled and secure solutions for the management and issuance of digital currencies.
Ripple earlier on understood that cryptocurrencies which act as just transactional currencies will face some regulation in the future which would lead to the creation of CBDCs from various governments across the world.
Having worked with numerous financial institutions, Ripple understands centralization deals with privacy and control over how a ledger should be maintained.
PRIVATE LEDGER central bank digital currency will possess the same features of the current technology which is powering the XRP ledger. This means that the proposed CBDC Private Ledger will be built purposely for payments and will aid in the swift movement of money at a cost-effective and reliable manner.
Ripple’s consensus protocol will ensure it scales faster than Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) and process a minimum of 1,500 transactions and an upgraded maximum of 50,000 transactions per second (TPS).
Check Out: The 5 Best Ways To Buy Ripple (XRP)
Crypto asset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
Cons Of Buying Ripple
Despite the numerous positives associated with the asset, it has some negatives which must be taken into account by all crypto enthusiasts. This section will answer questions such as is now a time to buy XRP, will Ripple lose its SEC case and what is the future of XRP?
❌ SEC Case Still Unsettled
Because of the partnerships of Ripple, it is clear that the company is not going to fold up anytime soon but the negatives associated with the digital trading asset does not bode well for investors.
After the SEC filed a case against Ripple in December 2020, its novel token plummeted on the market and shed 60.4676% of its price in the space of just 10 days. XRP has done well by climbing above $1 on April 6 2021 but the future of the crypto company is still unclear.
This uncertainty does not help potential investors who are pressed on seeing an end to this crisis of a huge company that has created great solutions for the world’s outmoded payment systems. Only time will tell if Ripple will win the case and gain back the trust of existing investors and that of sceptics.
Experts largely expect Ripple to beat the SEC in court and a recovery is likely on the way that could see XRP come back stronger than ever.
If Ripple wins the case, XRP could rally significantly and the price of XRP could reach new all-time highs, pushing its investability quotient.
❌ Strong Competition from Other Altcoins with Innovative Blockchain Networks
Ripple must continue being creative and innovative. The main reason the crypto trading asset got into the cryptocurrency space was because it saw the creation and gradual acceptance of Bitcoin (BTC) and Litecoin (LTC).
In the same way, Tron (TRX), EOS.io (EOS) and Cardano (ADA) are challenging Ethereum (ETH) to become colonizers of the DeFi space; other technologies may come in to compete for the largest share of the cross-border payments network.
Inasmuch as Ripple controls more than 80% of this space, its case with SEC coupled with a fall in investor interest along the line, depending on how the case goes, may tamper with the smooth sailing progress of the asset.
❌ Heavy Government Regulation May Set In
In Ripple’s situation, it is dealing with a huge case, so the company already knows how a bad relationship with a regulatory body could go. Ripple thrives on its novel token XRP for its On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) service and because of this, if cryptocurrencies are banned entirely due to strong regulations, it will affect the company’s operation in a very great way.
Although Ripple has set its sight on providing Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) with its Private Ledger technology, it has not made any partnerships thus far.
As a trader or investor, do an extensive analysis (fundamental and technical) and tread cautiously so that you would not make losses on your investments.
Will Ripple Reach $2?
According to experts, the bullish run of XRP is not over and could reach $2 in the not-too-distant future. Priceprediction.net has forecasted Ripple to exchange hands for $2 in 2027. Coin Price Forecast has forecasted XRP to reach $1.64 by the end of 2030. The Wallet Investor sees XRP reaching $1.86 in December 2026.
How To Invest In Ripple
As a result of Ripple’s case which has seen XRP delisted from some crypto exchanges, one of the trending questions on search engines is where can I buy XRP? You can buy XRP on eToro.
eToro is a licensed brokerage with enough experience in the trading and investing game which provides a safe and secure platform.
Kindly follow the steps below to buy your first XRPs.
The first step is to SIGN UP. Provide authentic details of your NAME, EMAIL ADDRESS, HOME ADDRESS and PHONE NUMBER.
The second step is VERIFICATION. Kindly go through the phase called Knowing Your Customer (KYC). A government-issued identification card which includes your full name, date of birth, date of expiry and signature will be required for this process.
The third step is to DEPOSIT FIAT CURRENCY (FUNDS). You will need to deposit money (EUR, USD or GBP) into your account to make the purchase of XRP possible.
The last step is to NAVIGATE to XRP and purchase your first XRPs and it will be processed and added onto your account.
Crypto asset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
XRP Price Predictions: What Are Experts Saying About Ripple?
Analysts have made many predictions but after XRP surpassed most forecasts, these are the next price forecasts which are essential to your trading and investment decisions and can help answer questions such as what will Ripple be worth in 2025, will Ripple hit $5 and what will Ripple be worth in 2030?
According to Ripple Coin News, the value of Ripple could rise to as high as $10 per token in 2025, and reach a potentially high level of $30 in 2030.
Price Prediction website foresees XRP increasing to $0.75 in 2023 and reaching $1.06 in 2024.
Shane Vernier of FX Leaders foresees XRP rising further to $3.00-$5.00 in the next 3 years. The main drivers behind this was attributed to further regulation, possible legal fallout from SEC judgment and increased adoption of XRP.
Experts on Digital Coin Price see an improvement in the price of XRP in the future. they believe Ripple will be worth $1.16 by the end of 2023, and then increase to $2.11 in 2025, $3.48 in 2028, and $6.84 in 2030.
Analysts in Coinpedia predict that Ripple will work with more European and Latin American banks which will push the XRP price at potential high of $2.4 in 2025.
Overall, many of the price forecasts point to a positive market valuation for Ripple in the crypto finance space. With the price of XRP trading below $2, Ripple’s price falls into the purchasing range of several traders and investors and it’s poised to bring gains to investors.
Read Also: Ripple Price Prediction for 2025 and 2030
The Bottom Line – Should You Invest In Ripple?
You should definitely consider Ripple (XRP) as an asset that is worth your money in terms of investment. Several experts forecast Ripple as a BUY.
With that said, you must remember that no asset is perfect. As a first mover in cross-border payment solutions, XRP saw an opportunity to create a system which can facilitate transactions in a decentralized manner without tapping into centralized financial institutions.
Theoretically, Ripple does not have scalability problems which makes its network one of the most demanded for financial institutions. Some of the financial institutions which work with Ripple have millions of customers and record billions of dollars in transactions annually. This brings more activity to XRP since it forms an integral part of Ripple’s On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) feature.
Ripple returned investors 250% in 2021 and with more partners added, Ripple XRP could likely continue to soar and bring gains to investors in the future.
eToro – The Best Platform To Buy Ripple
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Crypto asset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
What Will Ripple Be Worth In 2025?
Digitalcoin believes XRP will trade at a price of $2.11 by 2025 and at $3.48 by the end of 2028. Meanwhile, Coinpedia estimates XRP will be traded between $1.24 and $2.4 in 2025.
What Will Ripple Be Worth In 2030?
Price Prediction.net believes that a growth in use cases as well as adoption rates may reach $9.96 to see out 2030.