Who Created XRP Ripple?

XRP is the world's most commonly used cryptocurrency, one of the largest digital assets by market capitalization on a daily basis. It is made to facilitate low-cost, high-volume, and real-time payments. XRP has practically been identified as interchangeable with Ripple Labs, which utilizes it in its cross-border payment systems. But what everyone wants to know is: who created XRP? and when was XRP released?

The answer is complicated. XRP was designed early in the history of crypto design, and there were many different individuals and groups of individuals that worked on it. It begins even before Ripple Labs, when developers began to develop a better system than Bitcoin's shortcomings by developing a faster, more efficient payment system.

In this article, we'll explore XRP history from its early vision by Ryan Fugger, through its official XRP launch date, to the contributions of Ripple's co-founders. By the end, you'll have a clear picture of when was XRP created, who XRP creators were, and why it remains one of the most influential digital assets today.

The Early Beginnings of XRP - Ryan Fugger's Vision

The past of XRP runs before the past of Ripple Labs. Ryan Fugger, a Canadian software developer, in 2004 was developing a system, RipplePay. He envisioned a decentralized payments system by which individuals and communities would be empowered to issue their own credit and exchange value directly without banks or central authorities.

While RipplePay wasn't cryptocurrency by today's standards, it was the foundation of what would ultimately become XRP. Fugger's website used trust lines - a mechanism whereby users could exchange transactions among themselves using credit relationships among themselves. That idea of creating a peer-to-peer value exchange network became part of Ripple's DNA.

Prior to Bitcoin's popularity in 2011, developers had already started investigating how Fugger's idea would be using blockchain technology. This would provide a more efficient and power-saving money online in comparison to Bitcoin.

And so when one would wish to know about "who founded XRP?" the starting point goes back to Ryan Fugger as the originator of the concept whose realization would later be seen in Ripple and the XRP Ledger. Fugger himself may not have had a hand in the end product of XRP, but he is the hypothetical founder of XRP since it was his system that gave rise to the subject project in the very first place.

When Was XRP Developed and Launched?

There was formal development of XRP in 2011 when three coders, David Schwartz, Jed McCaleb, and Arthur Britto, set out to develop a new payment protocol for use in a digital space. Their target was to overcome the disadvantages of Bitcoin: slow confirmation times, high energy use, and not being able to scale for cross-border payments.

They had developed the XRP Ledger in 2012, a fast- and efficient-blockchain-like platform. The XRP Ledger used a consensus mechanism to authenticate transactions and could confirm more quickly, with less energy expenditure than Bitcoin's proof-of-work mining.

McCaleb and Larsen presented their new proposal to Ryan Fugger in September of 2012. Fugger, operating RipplePay since 2004, was willing to relinquish control of the project to them. This was the transition from Fugger's RipplePay concept to what would eventually become Ripple Labs and XRP in good faith.

So, in what year was XRP created? Technology creation of XRP occurred in 2011-2012, and XRP itself was introduced in 2012 with the founding of Ripple (formerly OpenCoin).

And when did XRP launch? XRP was already there since the year 2012, and Ripple Labs held back most of the supply to fuel network growth and adoption.

In short, when was XRP created? - XRP was founded in 2012, one of the first cryptocurrencies after Bitcoin.

Who Were XRP and Ripple Founders?

While Ryan Fugger started the early ideas of RipplePay, the group that developed the XRP and propelled the vision included a number of renowned individuals. They were not just the history makers of XRP but also of the company, Ripple Labs.

• Jed McCaleb - Arguably the most recognized developer in the cryptocurrency arena, McCaleb founded Mt. Gox (later disposed of before its downfall) and co-founded the XRP Ledger. He envisioned an energy-conservative and faster alternative to Bitcoin. McCaleb eventually parted ways with Ripple in 2014 and co-founded Stellar (XLM).

• David Schwartz - Ripple's chief cryptographer, more accurately described, was one of the primary designers of the XRP Ledger consensus protocol. Schwartz provided cryptography and distributed systems knowledge that drove the technical specification of XRP.

• Arthur Britto - Besides being a co-creator of the XRP Ledger, Britto was also part of the founding team since he had worked with McCaleb and Schwartz when the project first started. Less prominent than the others, his contribution was crucial in the development of the technology.

• Chris Larsen - Investor and entrepreneur, Larsen joined in 2012 and was the greatest business leader at Ripple. He was one of the co-founders of Ripple and was in charge of fund-raising, forming partnerships, and driving XRP into the financial sector.

These people joined to build Ryan Fugger's dream and make it what is today Ripple Labs and XRP. So, if one were to pose the question "who created XRP?", the answer is not an individual but as a whole: Fugger as concept-toronto-exclusive-owner, and McCaleb, Schwartz, Britto, and Larsen as the coder-entrepreneurs who brought XRP to market in 2012.

The XRP Launch and Early History

The launch timing of XRP was 2012 when the XRP Ledger was launched and Ripple Labs (formerly OpenCoin) came into being. That is when XRP became an operating payment and finance currency.

XRP was first released in bulk. While 100 billion XRP tokens came out, 80 billion were owned by Ripple Labs and 20 billion were owned by the Ripple founders (Jed McCaleb, Chris Larsen, and Arthur Britto). Later, this kind of distribution scheme was a centralization controversy issue but also gave Ripple enough tokens to cover its operations and development.

The early years of XRP development were invested in establishing Ripple as a fintech firm. It wasn't so much creating another cryptocurrency but on using XRP as an asset bridge for cross-border payments. That is where Ripple branched off from Bitcoin as "digital gold" and Ethereum or Solana focusing on smart contracts.

By 2013-2014, Ripple had begun going to banks and payment providers. XRP was marketed as the solution to speed up settlement and lower the cost of cross-border payments. Modest usage initially, this set the stage for Ripple's later business payments traction.

And so, when was XRP released? It was released in 2012, even though the earlier phases were used to test, gain credibility, and show how the technology would revolutionize payments globally.

Ripple's Growth and the Adoption of XRP

After the XRP launch in 2012, Ripple Labs was quickly touting itself as a payments company that aimed to disrupt cross-border payments. Most other cryptocurrency projects didn't offer XRP as a tool to speculate on, but as a tool to speculate against, whereas Ripple connected it to real-world use cases in finance in the actual world.

The issue Ripple set out to solve was the problem of slow, expensive, and ineffective cross-border payments. Traditional banking systems like SWIFT settle cross-border payments in days and incur exorbitant fees. Ripple proposed leveraging XRP as a bridge currency to ensure instantaneous settlement and liquidity across fiat currencies.

Ripple already in 2014-2017 had collaborated with some major financial institutions to experiment with its system. XRP's role in this system was to enable fast, cheap liquidity. It can take milliseconds to confirm a Solana transaction, but XRP transactions were also groundbreaking at the time - settling in 3-5 seconds, much faster than Bitcoin or Ethereum.

When Ripple grew, XRP was one of the most capitalized digital currencies. It was still one of the top three assets excluding Bitcoin and Ethereum in 2017-2018 when there was a crypto bubble. It was an incubation period in the life cycle of XRP, and it was one of the most well-known digital currencies in the market.

So whereas XRP was conceptualized by persons such as McCaleb, Schwartz, and Britto, it was actually designed as a global payments system by Ripple Labs founded by Chris Larsen and later Brad Garlinghouse. It is this dual function - as a cryptocurrency and as a fintech product - that differentiates XRP.

Controversies and Legal Issues in XRP Background

No account of who created XRP and how would be complete without mentioning the controversies which have haunted Ripple and the XRP token. As revolutionary as 2012 has been for XRP, the project has had its critics and fought lawsuits along the way.

Centralization Concerns

There were centralization claims of XRP from day one. While Bitcoin was mining, 100 billion XRP tokens were pre-mined because XRP initially went out. Ripple Labs owned 80 billion tokens, and if the company had too large an interest in the asset, it was debated. The debate rages to this day, with XRP's proponents citing Ripple's escrow system (to spread tokens slowly out over time) as a method of preventing oversupply.

Jed McCaleb's Exodus

Ripple co-founder Jed McCaleb departed the company in 2014 to co-found Stellar (XLM). His exit was contentious, especially after being awarded a ginormous sum of XRP. His dump in XRP incrementally every year fueled suspicion regarding price pressure.

The SEC Lawsuit

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Ripple Labs in December 2020 with selling XRP as an unregistered security. It was the highest-profile court battle in the crypto universe. The case raised gargantuan questions about the nature of cryptocurrencies and whether XRP is a bond or a share.

Despite the court fight having been in disarray, Ripple has not lost its quest elsewhere beyond America, instead targeting non-American markets. The outcome of this case will determine the destiny of Ripple and XRP.

In conclusion, XRP history is one of innovation and controversy. This sort of issue is proof of the challenges of decentralization, regulation, and adoption in crypto.

Who Created XRP vs. Who Created Ripple

If one asks "who came up with XRP?" it is somewhat misleading since there is not a single disparity between the team said to have developed XRP and founder of Ripple.

David Schwartz, Jed McCaleb, and Arthur Britto created the XRP Ledger in 2011-2012 from Ryan Fugger's earlier RipplePay system. They created XRP as a more rapid digital currency than Bitcoin. This group is best known for creating XRP.

Ripple's Foundation

Meanwhile, Chris Larsen also joined the team in 2012 and helped make Ripple Labs (formerly OpenCoin) the entity that would be responsible for the XRP Ledger. Both Larsen and McCaleb are commonly accepted to be part of Ripple's group of founders. Ripple Labs would eventually become the entity to push XRP adoption across the financial industry, develop RippleNet, and interact with banks and payment processors.

Ryan Fugger's Contribution

Even though Fugger did not develop the XRP Ledger, his initial RipplePay concept is given the credit of being the impetus that spurred the efforts towards developing Ripple and XRP. Because of his dream of peer-to-peer transaction, the XRP history might never have taken place.

So in summary:

• When was XRP created? → 2011-2012, when McCaleb, Schwartz, and Britto developed the ledger.

• When was XRP established? → 2012, when Ripple (OpenCoin) was founded.

• Who established XRP? → Founders of the XRP Ledger (McCaleb, Schwartz, Britto), in Ryan Fugger's spirit.

• Who established Ripple? → Business founder Chris Larsen and tech founder Jed McCaleb.

This disparity also explains why so frequently the XRP inventor and Ripple inventor are referenced synonymously when both are discussing distinct individuals on the project.

Conclusion

There is not an easy one-size-fits-all answer to who invented XRP. Instead, the origin of XRP is one of co-creation and evolution. Ryan Fugger founded the company with RipplePay in 2004 as a peer-to-peer payment idea that opened the doors to the things that were yet to come. XRP Ledger was developed by Jed McCaleb, David Schwartz, and Arthur Britto in 2011-2012 with dreams of quicker, less expensive, and more scalable Bitcoin transactions. Chris Larsen, an entrepreneur, later joined and co-founded Ripple (formerly OpenCoin) and distributed XRP to the financial world.

So when did they create XRP? The XRP Ledger was created between 2011-2012. When did XRP launch? XRP was launched in 2012, the year when Ripple Labs was founded. XRP is currently one of the world's leading cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, a leading cross-border payments and blockchain finance enabler.

There is some XRP background that involves setbacks - anywhere from centralization controversies to the pending SEC lawsuit currently pending - but its mission to enhance cross-border payments remains. Ripple continues to build additional bank and fintech collaborations worldwide, and XRP remains a fast, efficient bridging currency.