XRP Overview
Your Questions About XRP, Answered.
What is XRP?
XRP is a digital asset that’s native to the XRP Ledger, an open-source, permissionless and decentralized blockchain technology.
Created in 2012 specifically for payments, XRP can settle transactions on the ledger in 3-5 seconds. It was built to be a better Bitcoin—faster, cheaper and greener than any other digital asset.
Benefits
| Benefits |  XRP |
 Bitcoin |
 |
3-5 seconds to settle | 500 seconds to settle |
 |
$0.0002/transaction | $0.50/transaction |
 |
1,500 transactions per second | 3 transactions per second |
 |
Environmentally sustainable and carbon neutral | 0.3% of global energy consumption |
Finite Supply of XRP
XRP can be sent directly without needing a central intermediary, making it a convenient instrument in bridging two different currencies quickly and efficiently. It is freely exchanged on the open market and used in the real world for enabling cross-border payments and microtransactions.
Unlike Bitcoin, there is a finite amount of XRP. All XRP is already in existence today—100 billion in total.
History of XRPHow Does the XRP Ledger Work?
The XRP Ledger is open-source technology on which anyone can build. The XRP Ledger is maintained by a global “XRP Community”—a diverse set of participants composed of software engineers, server operators and validators.
The XRP Ledger uses a consensus protocol, in which validators come to an agreement on the order of XRP transactions every 3-5 seconds. This agreement serves as the final and irreversible settlement.
Transactions are executed in a deterministic order to prevent double spending and malicious activity. Unlike other blockchains, transaction fees are destroyed as part of transaction execution. The XRP Ledger adjusts fees in near real time to respond to network conditions, with the twin goals of maximizing transaction throughput while keeping transaction fees as low as possible.
All servers in the network process each transaction according to the same rules, and any transaction that follows the protocol is confirmed as soon as validators reach a quorum.
XRP Validators
Anyone can operate a validator; currently, over 150 validators are active on the ledger, operated by universities, exchanges, businesses and individuals.
Get TechnicalWhy Is XRP Useful?
XRP is fast, low-cost, sustainable and scalable. It is the key to fueling growth and realizing the true potential of our global economy—the Internet of Value.
Businesses
Many businesses are building on the XRP Ledger, pursuing powerful use cases in decentralized finance, micropayments, gaming, web monetization and more. Additionally, Ripple, the technology company, is focused on building a network and infrastructure that leverages XRP to power faster, more affordable cross-border payments around the world.
More About BusinessesIndividuals
Individual consumers can use XRP to move different currencies around the world. For example, through wallets and exchanges that use PayID, anyone can use XRP—or any currency, be it fiat or digital assets—to easily make purchases across any payments network.
More About UsesDevelopers
By building on the XRP Ledger, developers can easily integrate payments into their products—seamlessly putting money at the center of their applications. Projects like the RippleX developer platform are making it easier for developers to leverage XRP.
More About DevelopersInternet of Value
Fast
The XRP Ledger settles transactions faster than any other blockchain—in 3-5 seconds.
Low-Cost
XRP transactions cost a fraction of a penny ($0.0002)—much less than other cryptocurrencies and average fiat payments.
Scalable
The XRP Ledger can handle up to 1,500 transactions per second.
Sustainable
XRP transactions settle without the enormous and unsustainable energy costs associated with proof-of-work (or mining).
Real
XRP is one of the only digital assets with a proven, real-world use case: cross-border payments.
Trading
How Is XRP Used in Trading?
XRP is traded on more than 140 markets and exchanges worldwide.
XRP’s low transaction fees, reliability and high speed enable traders to use the digital asset as fast, cost-efficient and reliable collateral across trading venues—seizing arbitrage opportunities, servicing margin calls and managing general trading inventory in real time.
Because of the properties inherent to XRP and the ecosystem around it, traders worldwide are able to shift collateral, bridge currencies and switch from one crypto into another nearly instantly, across any exchange on the planet.
Find Out MoreRipple vs. XRP
What Is the Relationship Between Ripple and XRP?
Ripple is a technology company that makes it easier to build a high-performance, global payments business through its platform, RippleNet. XRP is a digital asset independent of this, and is used in Ripple’s On-Demand Liquidity service to facilitate efficient and cost-effective cross-border transactions. In December of 2017, Ripple placed 55 Billion XRP into a cryptographically secured escrow account to support stable and healthy XRP markets.
Visit Ripple's WebsiteXRP Community
XRPL.org: For the Community, by the Community
XRPL.org is a community-driven resource for all things XRP and XRP Ledger (XRPL). If you’d like to suggest additional information around XRP, you can suggest changes here.
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