Ripple CTO David Schwartz has revealed some interesting facts about himself, his early days at Ripple, and what could prompt him to leave the crypto payments company.
The Ripple CTO shared the revelation after a XRP community figure MetaMan clarified that Schwartz was merely an employee loyal to Ripple, not XRP and its underlying blockchain XRP Ledger (XRPL).
His Loyalty to Ripple and Larsen
Reacting to the tweet, Schwartz disclosed how he joined Ripple during the company’s early days. According to him, Ripple’s chairman and co-founder, Chris Larsen, invited him to join the company’s board due to his loyalty.
At the time, David Schwartz assured Larsen that his loyalty would continue as long as he deemed him the most suitable individual to lead Ripple’s operations.
Despite declaring his loyalty to Larsen, Schwartz categorically told him that his loyalty is to Ripple, not the Ripple co-founder in particular.
Notably, Schwartz praised Larsen, describing the Ripple co-founder as rational. He stated that he might be wrong if he could not convince Larsen of his perspective.
Factor That Can Make Schwartz Leave Ripple
Furthermore, Schwartz revealed that he holds a lot of Ripple’s stock. He previously noted how he chose Ripple stock over XRP when he had the chance. However, he stressed that owning Ripple stock does not imply that he must continue to work at the crypto payments behemoth.
Consequently, Schwartz stated that he would stop working at Ripple if it were no longer fun there.
Many years ago, I was talking to Chris Larsen and he said he wanted me on the board at Ripple because I was loyal. And in the moment, I interpreted it as loyal to him.
I told him that I would be loyal to him so long as I felt he was the right guy to run Ripple. He's rational,…
— David "JoelKatz" Schwartz (@JoelKatz) April 18, 2024
Not a Billionaire Yet
Despite owning a lot of Ripple stock, Schwartz recently revealed that he was not yet a billionaire, emphasizing that he still needs to captain his yacht while his mansion is without a servant.
Still not.https://t.co/DSaJrjisz4
— David "JoelKatz" Schwartz (@JoelKatz) April 15, 2024
Recall that David Schwartz had commented on his Ripple stock holdings, a decision he considers a pretty big mistake, as he would have opted for XRP like other execs at the company.
For context, Ripple’s co-founders Arthur Britto, Chris Larsen, and Jed McCaleb received 20 billion XRP together. When Schwartz joined Ripple’s board, he opted to receive a 2% stake in the company instead of 500 million XRP.
The jury is still out, but it probably turned out to be a pretty big mistake. A number that was thrown around was 500 million XRP. And, of course, XRP is nearly perfectly liquid. 1/2
— David "JoelKatz" Schwartz (@JoelKatz) July 18, 2022