XRP (XRP) Gains National Recognition After President Donald Trump Mentions the “Valuable Cryptocurrency”

Ripple Labs' XRP (XRP), the third-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, gained national recognition after President Donald Trump mentioned the “valuable cryptocurrency”

President Donald Trump's planned US strategic crypto reserve will reportedly hold "valuable" cryptocurrency assets, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Ripple’s XRP, according to a report by CCXV.

Trump’s executive order on March 6 unveiled a new structure for the altcoins, known as the Digital Asset Stockpile, which will be managed by the Treasury.

While the crypto community remains divided on whether XRP is truly as valuable as President Trump suggests, a closer look at the altcoin’s utility is warranted.

XRP’s potential role in banking

Launched in 2012 by Ripple Labs, the XRP Ledger (XRPL) was designed for interbank settlements. It initially offered three enterprise solutions: xRapid, xCurrent, and xVia, all later rebranded under the RippleNet umbrella. XCurrent provides real-time messaging and settlement between banks, xVia is a payment interface allowing financial institutions to send payments through RippleNet, and xRapid, now part of On-Demand Liquidity (ODL), facilitates cross-border transactions.

Only ODL actually requires XRP; the other services allow banks to use RippleNet without ever holding the token. This means bank adoption of Ripple technology does not always drive XRP’s price.

Some of the world’s largest banks have used xCurrent and xVia, including American Express, Santander, Bank Of America, and UBS. There is less data on the entities that use XRP-powered ODL service. Known adopters include SBI Remit, a major Japanese remittance provider, and Tranglo, a leading remittance company in Southeast Asia.

XRP’s role in Web3

XRP is also used as a gas token. However, unlike the Ethereum network, where fees go to validators, a small amount of XRP is burned as an anti-spam mechanism.

XRP’s role in Web3 is minimal. Unlike Ethereum, Ripple does not support complex smart contracts or DApps. It offers only basic Web3 functionality, such as a token issuance mechanism and native NFT support under the XLS-20 standard, introduced in 2022.

The XRPL Web3 ecosystem is small. Its modest DeFi sector holds $80 million in total value locked (TVL), according to DefiLlama. XRPL’s tokens have a combined market cap of $468 million, according to Xrpl.to. Most of them are DEX tokens (SOLO) and memes (XRPM), as well as wrapped BTC and stablecoins.

So far, XRPL’s Web3 sector remains niche and trails true smart contract platforms like Ethereum and Solana.

Crypto pundits split hairs on XRP’s role in a strategic reserve

At the end of January, the House passed a bill that would require the US to create a national strategy for cryptocurrency.

This follows a December report by the Presidential Economic Policy Advisers, recommending the creation of a US strategic crypto reserve.

Highlighting the administration’s interest in crypto, President Trump plans to launch a new "Digital Asset Stockpile" to be managed by the Treasury, according to CCXV.

The report also mentions that the crypto portfolio will consist of "valuable" digital assets, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Stellar, Chainlink, and Ripple’s XRP.

This sparks a debate among crypto pundits on whether XRP truly holds the same value as President Trump suggests.

While the role of BTC as a decentralized store of value is widely recognized, XRP’s purpose remains less clear, although few in the crypto space would argue that it could qualify as independent money.

This is primarily due to one of Ripple’s most uncomfortable aspects—its permissioned nature. Unlike Bitcoin or Ethereum, Ripple does not rely on miners or staked tokens to secure the network. Instead, it uses a Unique Node List—a group of trusted validators responsible for approving transactions.

This setup, which optimizes speed and efficiency, sparks concerns about censorship, corruption, and security risks.

Discussing the potential of XRP, Bitcoin proponent and co-founder of Casa Jameson Lopp didn’t mince his words:

There’s no love lost between Bitcoiners and B brightercoin supporters, especially after Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen partnered with Greenpeace to fund an anti-Bitcoin campaign.

However, Lopp’s comparison to CBDCs holds some weight, given XRPL’s permissioned nature. It reflects a common view in the crypto community that XRP functions more like a banking tool than a truly independent cryptocurrency.

While the XRPL blockchain sees widespread use in banking, XRP’s utility remains a point of concern. It is underscored by the fact that approximately 55% of the 100 billion pre-mined coins are still held by Ripple Labs. This concentration sparks concerns about potential market manipulation and the coin’s long-term stability.