XRP News Today: XRPL Validator Challenges Caitlin Long's Criticisms of Ripple and XRP

A recent response from an XRPL validator known as Vet has taken issue with the claims made by Caitlin Long, CEO of Custodia Bank, regarding Ripple and the XRP Ledger [1]. The controversy began after Long appeared on the “Gold Goats ‘n Guns Podcast,” where she expressed skepticism about the legitimacy, structure, and future of the XRP ecosystem. These comments, later shared on social media by Digital Asset Investor, sparked broader debate within the crypto community.

Vet outlined five core reasons he believes Long’s criticisms are based on either factual inaccuracies or a fundamental misunderstanding of the XRP Ledger. His first argument centers on Ripple’s funding history. He emphasized that Ripple never conducted an initial coin offering (ICO) and that the 100 billion XRP were placed in a genesis account at the time of the ledger’s launch, with no exchange for capital. This, he argues, distinguishes Ripple from other blockchain projects like Ethereum, which did raise funds through public token sales [1].

The second point challenges Long’s assertion that the XRP Ledger is centralized. Vet argues the opposite: that the ledger is open and permissionless. He cited the presence of over 1,000 active nodes and more than 100 validators operated globally by individuals and organizations as evidence of its decentralized nature. In his view, to describe the XRP Ledger as centralized is to ignore the verifiable reality of its network structure [1].

Thirdly, Vet questioned the credibility of Long’s preference for Ethereum as a more trustworthy platform. He pointed out that Ethereum itself was launched via an ICO, where early investors received ETH in exchange for Bitcoin. If the issue is about upfront capital acquisition, Vet argues, then Ethereum should also be under scrutiny rather than being held up as a benchmark for legitimacy [1].

Vet also rejected the notion that Ripple has moved away from the XRP Ledger. He highlighted that Ripple Payments continues to operate on the XRP Ledger and that Ripple’s new stablecoin, RLUSD, is being issued on the same network. This, he claims, demonstrates a clear and ongoing commitment to XRP as a foundational infrastructure for Ripple’s financial services [1].

Lastly, Vet emphasized that the XRP Ledger has shown consistent development and adoption. He pointed to the growing number of business use cases, increased developer activity, and protocol enhancements as signs of a thriving ecosystem. He also noted that the XRP Ledger is home to a highly liquid decentralized exchange and was the first platform to enable tokenization, which he sees as indicators of its relevance and forward momentum [1].

Long’s critique of XRP’s design and role in the future of tokenization remains a point of contention. However, Vet’s response presents a detailed factual defense of Ripple’s strategy and the ongoing development of the XRP Ledger. The exchange underscores the importance of scrutinizing blockchain projects based on their actual structures and progress, rather than assumptions or misunderstandings.

Source:

[1] XRPL Validator Lists 5 Reasons Why Caitlin Long Is Wrong About Ripple and XRP (https://timestabloid.com/xrpl-validator-lists-5-reasons-why-caitlin-long-is-wrong-about-ripple-and-xrp/)