Things have been very slow when it comes to the ripple (xrp) network ecosystem (digital). We have seen their native token XRP not performing as expected from inception. Personally, I would say I am not too much a fan of their ecosystem, things happen to be too rigid and in the absence of flexibility, it's difficult to impress the masses.
One would say the case with the securities and exchange commission (sec) has really pinned down the advancement of this network. Yes it has, it has not been an easy law suit with punches from both ends. There is a high chance that Ripples will win this 'not a network' lawsuit or should they lose, they'll pay some fines and business will still continue. When this happens, I only see it creating a market price hype for few weeks to months and nothing much.
Why am I saying so? It all started from the inception of Ripples network, making it payment centered blockchain. How do you disrupt bitcoin and ethereum network to lead the pack when it comes to payment transactions? You may say they have high transaction fees, yet trust continues to grow for these two pairs. A friend on the chain put up a thread recently of demanded to pay more than $200 dollars for gas price (cryptocurrency) on ethereum network and it looked so bizzare. Putting only payment on the table may not be enough to announce the Ripples network.
Speaking of which, in my recent follow up, I've come to realize their CTO has seen the same with a plan to broaden the ripple ecosystem beyond payments. Innovation sits on the bank of crypto and blockchain technology and if price and payment is all we see, then I see no real difference from traditional banks. The rigidity in this network will be broken when a full adoption is achieved. David Schwartz gave words last month with promising plans for Ripple to broaden its tech into other areas such as real-world assets, tokenization and a multi chain ecosystem.
He really cited that payment is not getting enough attention and results. Yes and without doubt, the Ripple network has that infrastructure (computer) that beats traditiona lfinance protocols. When it comes to speed and fees, we have seen several hedges in the Ripple network with their native token XRP taking 3-5 seconds all thanks to its quorum consensus protocol, if you are a big fan of transaction speed, try comparing this with bitcoin and you'll know what I mean.
Indeed, the Ripple's payment protocol has been designed to be both efficient and fast. Sitting at fourth position of blockchain with highest transaction speed after Solana (sol) polygon and tron with a transaction speed of up to 1,500 transactions per second (tps). We have seen it go beyond price, especially in the Solana network.
So what's the plan according to Schwartz? His personal term was 'broadening' but this may just be English to cover the intention, the idea is to adopt new features into this ecosystem and there is absolutely nothing wrong with this. We have seen the impact of real world asset and tokenization in an advancing world. Multichain approach by this network will help spark innovation with non fungible token (nft) and smart contract having what to offer from this angle.
So what's the future of XRP?
As earlier said, the struggle with the SEC has inconvenienced this network. Nevertheless, with this new adoption if properly executed, I see Ripples competing with rival chains and helping to promote the cryptocurrency ecosystem in general. Looking at the facts that XRP once reached an all time high (ath)of over $3, we should not limit the possibility of a bounce back. Just like David Swartzs has seen added advantage in scaling beyond payment, I see the Ripple price chart changing direction soon.
It might not be that fast, yet you won't underestimate where such a large and reputable chain like XRP can scale upto in time of massive adoption beyond payment. Competing with Bitcoin and ETH network is no easy task as it stands, even the altcoin industries have projects that keep showing tech advancement to shift current leaders. Many feel they've been holding XRP bags for quite a while now and yes, I have not been putting much interest until this recent news. What do you have to say about the Ripple network, can this blockchain scale and emerge beyond just a payment processor? Can new investors flock into this system when new features are incorporated?
To conclude, let me add, the Ripple network has played it part in adding to the cryptoverse, I feel its firsts inception as the bankers or firms token which centered mainly payment slacked the system. It goes beyond the SEC's lawsuit. The possibilities of a turnaround are at the corner if the broadening as said by their CTO takes full effects. As I will always say, never underestimate the power of innovation.