The XRP community has unearthed a past statement in which Ripple CTO David Schwartz said the company pursues business models that benefit XRP’s price.
Specifically, Schwartz made the comment exactly eight years ago, on October 27, 2017. Yet it continues to resonate within the XRP community today.
Schwartz’s 2017 Insight on Ripple’s Strategy
Back in 2017, Schwartz explained how Ripple evaluates spending decisions to maximize the value of XRP over time.
He posed a hypothetical scenario suggesting that if Ripple had the opportunity to spend $100 million and reasonably expected it would increase XRP’s price by a penny over time, the company would consider doing so.
When asked whether Ripple even had $100 million in cash at the time, Schwartz said he couldn’t disclose the company’s finances but assured that Ripple was financially strong.
In parallel, he added that Ripple’s approach is to invest money strategically to maximize the value of its XRP holdings, and that this strategy is open and well-known. In his words:
“Ripple’s business model is to spend money in a way that allows the company to get maximum value for its stash of XRP. This is not a secret.”
Ripple's business model is to spend money in a way that allows the company to get maximum value for its stash of XRP. This is not a secret.
— David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) October 26, 2017
Ripple’s Valuation and Crypto Holdings
That comment now carries significant weight. As of 2024, Ripple’s valuation stood at $11.3 billion, according to reports confirming its $500 million share buyback from early investors and employees.
The firm disclosed it held over $1 billion in cash and a crypto portfolio worth $25 billion, largely dominated by XRP. At the time, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse also emphasized that the company remained financially strong, and consequently, it was not pursuing a U.S. IPO.
Ripple’s XRP Holdings Cross $100 Billion in 2025
According to data from Ripple’s API, as of October 27, 2025, the company holds:
- 35,000,000,005 XRP in escrow, worth approximately $92.75 billion, and
- 4,968,498,761 XRP in a spendable balance, worth over $13 billion.
Together, Ripple controls nearly $106 billion in XRP, marking one of the largest crypto reserves held by any company globally.
The Vision Remains Relevant Today
Meanwhile, Schwartz’s words that Ripple’s mission is to deploy resources to enhance the long-term value of XRP have further manifested in the company’s acquisition strategy.
In his latest statement, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse stressed that XRP remains key to the company’s long-term vision while celebrating the completion of its $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road (now Ripple Prime).
Notably, Hidden Road is part of Ripple’s five acquisitions over the past years, including GTreasury ($1B), Rail ($200M), Standard Custody (undisclosed), and Metaco ($250M).
While these deals often highlight Ripple USD (RLUSD) as a utility token, Garlinghouse stressed,
“XRP sits at the center of everything Ripple does.”
Ripple President Monica Long echoed this, noting that Ripple Prime is exploring integrating XRP alongside RLUSD as collateral for prime brokerage services. This further confirms XRP’s continued central role in Ripple’s financial ecosystem.
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