Ripple CTO emeritus David Schwartz believes strong adoption of the XRP Ledger (XRPL) in financial services will drive demand for XRP and increase its value.
Schwartz made the comments while discussing whether burning XRP transaction fees directly affects the token’s price.
“I think a world where XRPL is highly successful in financial applications, but XRP does not have high demand and value is very unlikely,” he said.
He acknowledged that XRP would face limited benefits if the crypto industry relied almost entirely on one dominant asset, but he considers that scenario unlikely.
How XRPL Adoption Will Increase XRP Demand
Schwartz explained that XRPL’s low transaction fees and reliable performance attract financial activity to the network. As more assets and transactions move through XRPL, demand for XRP increases.
He highlighted two key reasons:
- Transaction fees: XRP is required to pay fees on the network.
- Liquidity and accessibility: XRP serves as a neutral asset that facilitates transactions between different parties.
Do XRP Burns Increase Its Price?
The discussion also examined whether burning XRP in transaction fees directly increases its market value.
XRP supporter Saul argued that the fee-burning mechanism was designed primarily to prevent spam, not to increase XRP’s price. Raising transaction fees burns more XRP but also makes the network less attractive to users.
Schwartz has previously stated that token burns have little direct impact on price, although they offer indirect benefits. His central argument is that XRP gains value through greater use of the XRPL network, not through token burning alone.
I think that's one example of the mechanism I'm talking about. XRP has other advantages on XRPL too. It's the only counterparty-free asset that any account can accept. People have to hold it to pay fees. All of those things can help drive value and demand.
— David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) October 23, 2026
XRP Benefits Even if Bitcoin Dominates
David Schwartz explained that even if Bitcoin becomes the primary asset for settlements, XRP still benefits from activity on the XRP Ledger (XRPL).
The network supports different versions of Bitcoin, with XRP facilitating the transfer of value between Bitcoin and other assets. This allows XRP to serve as a bridge currency without becoming the primary settlement asset.
XRP supporter Saul noted that XRPL’s auto-bridging feature facilitates this process by using XRP to connect trades between different assets.
He added that transaction fees and XRP held in accounts have little direct impact on its price, while their indirect effects operate through market speculation.
Schwartz agreed that auto-bridging gives XRP a practical use case but emphasized that the token offers additional advantages.
Vet Highlights XRPL Built-In Exchange
XRPL validator Vet also argued that the network’s design positions XRP to gain value as adoption grows. He highlighted XRPL’s built-in decentralized exchange, which allows users to trade assets without relying entirely on separate platforms or complex smart-contract systems.
According to Vet, this design simplifies transactions and strengthens XRP’s role as more assets, including Ripple USD (RLUSD), circulate on the network.
The Main Takeaway
XRP’s value extends beyond the tokens burned to pay transaction fees. While fee burning primarily prevents spam, greater XRPL adoption drives demand for XRP by strengthening its role in trading, providing liquidity and transferring value between different assets.
As financial activity expands in XRPL, XRP’s utility as a bridge currency and transaction asset becomes increasingly important to its long-term value proposition.