There has always been a big debate on the decentralization of cryptocurrencies. Even though many projects claim they are decentralized, the reality is much different. Therefore, whenever such a topic sparkles for any crypto, it takes a hit. This is why Vitalik Buterin’s recent comment, where he calls XRP ‘completely centralized’, is critical. He said this in a recent interview with Bankless.
Vitalik Buterin on XRP
The co-founder of Ethereum was already pissed at XRP for calling Bitcoin and Ethereum Chinese-controlled assets. So, he also made some comments. According to Vitalik, any crypto project should use a chain data structure which XRP doesn’t. Calling XRP still centralized came to the attention of Ripple’s CTO. He said that Vitalik seems not to understand the difference between XRP, a digital asset, and Ripple, a company. Or, it’s quite plausible that he is just pretending not to.
Vitalik also has his reasons for making such strong comments on XRP. That’s because XRP has also made some shrewd comments on Ethereum being controlled by China, which is indirectly saying that it is centralized. They also claimed that Ethereum got preferred by the SEC due to this reason. Vitalik said that the crypto community should not protect XRP after they made this statement.
Is Vitalik actually correct about this?
Ripple, the blockchain company that is behind XRP does hold a lot of its tokens. However, their holdings are less than 50% of the total supply. Plus, they also control only 4 of the 130 validators behind XRP. This shows that even though they have influence over XRP, it is not completely centralized. The company also clears that every validator has a vote on what happens with XRP despite the number of tokens they are holdings. So, more tokens don’t mean more power. XRP is based on the XRPL network, which is decentralized and has a democratic consensus mechanism.
Due to Vitalik’s popularity, his comments are definitely going to hurt the XRP token. Let’s see if there are any further comments made by the co-founder of Ethereum and Ripple authorities on this topic.
Why do you think Vitalik Buterin calls XRP ‘centralized’? Does he really believe it or not is yet another question? Let us know in the comments below. And, if you found our content informative, share it with your family and friends.
Also Read: Vitalik Buterin reveals 3 major opportunities in the crypto space in 2023.
