Chris Larsen Explains Why the Company Was Named Ripple

Chris Larsen, the Ripple Chairman, discloses the inspiration behind the company’s name and the rebranding from the initial name OpenCoin.

Larsen divulged this information in a recent interview with Ben Fong-Torres, discussing the origin of the payments firm. Originally founded as OpenCoin in 2012, Ripple has become a significant player in the digital payment and cryptocurrency scene. The story behind its rebranding to Ripple is interestingly rooted in music history.

XRP community figure XRPDROPZ spotlighted the interview in a post on X. During the interview, Fong-Torres inquired whether the name Ripple was inspired by the famous 1970 Grateful Dead song. Larsen confirmed this, explaining the manner in which they acquired the name.

Origin of the Ripple Brand

According to him, a man who had once operated a 900 number for Grateful Dead information owned the rights to the name Ripple. This individual had been approached by many interested buyers over the years. However, Larsen and his team were able to secure the name by offering shares in their company, a move that proved mutually beneficial.

From Larsen’s disclosure, it appears the inspiration behind choosing Ripple as the new name for OpenCoin had multiple layers. He confirmed that at the time he and his team were developing a Bitcoin competitor, and their vision involved distributing the cryptocurrency to the world freely. 

This concept resonated with the focus of the Grateful Dead song “Ripple,” which speaks of a fountain. Larsen found the idea of a digital currency “rippling around” the world to be fitting, given his experiences attending Grateful Dead concerts. These concerts left a lasting impression on him, influencing the ethos and direction of Ripple.

Larsen also shed light on the financial success of the individual who sold them the Ripple name. Initially worth around $100,000, the shares he received in exchange for the name soared in value, ultimately reaching approximately $30 million. This increase shows the tremendous growth Ripple has experienced since its inception.

Ripple CTO Commends Larsen’s Contributions

Notably, Larsen has been instrumental in this growth. Ripple CTO David Schwartz confirmed this in a recent disclosure during an AMA session. Schwartz identified the Ripple Chairman as the most important individual in the company’s history, stressing how he remained committed to its growth at a point when it was challenging.

It bears mentioning that while Ripple as a company was not involved in the creation of XRP, the native token of the XRP Ledger, there remains a close relationship between the original architects of the ledger and Ripple. XRP was called “ripples” at the time. Schwartz also previously explained the rationale behind the “XRP” currency code.