Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO), David Schwartz, has recently addressed ongoing concerns and rumors surrounding XRP sales and its supply. In a detailed explanation, he reassured the community that Ripple’s approach to XRP sales is both strategic and transparent, with the primary goal of strengthening the XRP ecosystem.
Schwartz clarified that Ripple’s sales of XRP are not solely for generating revenue but are also crucial in funding projects that contribute to XRP’s adoption and growth. He emphasized that these sales are conducted responsibly and in a way that ensures they do not have a negative impact on the broader market.
Ripple’s mission, he explained, is to increase XRP’s utility, particularly in the realm of cross-border payments. The company is focused on fostering partnerships and innovations that aim to make financial transactions more efficient and cost-effective.
Debunking Claims of Unlimited XRP Minting
A recent wave of speculation emerged on social media, suggesting that Ripple could potentially mint additional XRP tokens. Schwartz took to social media to directly address these claims, strongly rejecting the idea that XRP’s supply could be manipulated or increased at will.
“There is no network rule in the XRP Ledger (XRPL) code that allows XRP to be created. In fact, the network’s rules, enforced by nodes, specifically prohibit this,” Schwartz explained in response to a post from X user Pierre Rochard, who had claimed Ripple could mint more XRP.
Schwartz further pointed out that the XRP Ledger (XRPL) is equipped with robust safeguards to prevent any unauthorized token creation. He drew attention to other instances in the cryptocurrency space, such as the Bitcoin overflow bug, which had allowed the creation of 184 billion BTC due to a code vulnerability. “This is not possible on XRPL due to its sophisticated invariant checking system, an innovation that could have prevented such incidents like the Bitcoin overflow bug and the DAO attack,” he added.
Backing Schwartz’s Statement
Supporting Schwartz’s explanation, XRPL validator and co-founder of xrpcafe, Vet, confirmed that there is no way to mint additional XRP. Matt Hamilton, a former Ripple developer, also reinforced this point, stating, “There is literally no function to create more XRP. The code to do such a thing does not exist. Additionally, every node on the network runs a check that ensures no XRP can be accidentally created, like what happened with the Bitcoin value overflow bug.”
XRP operates with a fixed supply of 100 billion tokens, which means its total supply will never increase. Unlike other assets, XRP’s supply slightly decreases over time due to small amounts being permanently destroyed as transaction fees.
In conclusion, Schwartz’s statements, along with the confirmation from other experts, make it clear that the idea of creating more XRP is simply not possible. This fixed supply structure ensures the integrity of XRP and further solidifies the confidence in its long-term sustainability as a digital asset.
