Former Ripple developer reveals a $56 billion missed opportunity from choosing Bitcoin over XRP, highlighting XRP’s overlooked investment potential.
A recent analysis shows that Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) missed out on over $56 billion in extra profit by choosing to invest in Bitcoin over XRP.
Matt Hamilton, former Ripple developer and now Head of Developer Relations at ASIMOV Protocol, recently shared a revealing analysis showing that Strategy could have nearly doubled its profits if it had gone with XRP instead of Bitcoin.
Hamilton took a look at MicroStrategy’s full Bitcoin investment history and compared it to a hypothetical XRP investment using the same amounts and purchase dates.
Interestingly, the calculations showed that XRP would have returned about $129 billion by now, nearly twice the current $72.2 billion value of Strategy’s Bitcoin portfolio. Notably, this represents missed gains of around $56.8 billion.
Strategy’s Bitcoin Journey
For context, Strategy began its Bitcoin journey on August 11, 2020, buying 21,454 BTC for $250 million at an average price of $11,653 per coin. This move made the company the first publicly listed firm to adopt Bitcoin as its treasury reserve asset. From there, it kept adding to its stash in increasingly larger amounts.
Some of its largest purchases came up in December 2020, when it added 29,646 BTC at a cost of about $650 million. In February 2021, it followed up with another major buy of 19,452 BTC worth around $1.026 billion. Later that year, in June, it bought 13,005 BTC for $489 million, averaging $37,617 per coin.
The company continued its buying spree into 2024 and 2025. Between Nov. 1 and 10, 2024, it acquired 27,200 BTC for $2.03 billion at an average price of $74,632. Then in February 2025, it picked up 20,356 BTC for $1.9 billion, with Bitcoin averaging $97,514 at the time.
Meanwhile, the most aggressive stretch came between Q4 2024 and Q1 2025, when it scooped up 218,887 BTC in a $20.5 billion push, nearly halfway to its $42 billion capital raising goal. Its most recent move happened between July 7 and 13, 2025, when it added 4,225 BTC for $472.5 million, paying an average of $111,827 per coin.
Today, MicroStrategy holds 601,550 BTC bought at an average price of $71,268 each. Altogether, it spent $42.87 billion on its Bitcoin portfolio. With the current value at $72.2 billion, the company has built an unrealized gain of around $29.4 billion.
XRP Treasury Gaining Momentum
However, Hamilton’s XRP analysis shows that Strategy could have done far better. When asked, he pointed out that the numbers didn’t even account for the market impact of MicroStrategy’s real-life Bitcoin buys. In reality, if the company had gone all-in on XRP, the added exposure and public attention could have boosted XRP’s price even more.
No, it doesn't factor those in at all. If he *actually* had bought XRP then I feel the price of XRP would be quite a bit higher just from the publicity.
— Matt Hamilton (@HammerToe) July 19, 2025
Interestingly, XRP is already gaining attention as a treasury asset, as several firms look to replicate Strategy’s playbook with the altcoin. Most recently, Everything Blockchain revealed plans to amass $10 million in XRP, joining the likes of Trident, Webus International, VivoPower, and a host of others.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
