Ripple ex-CTO denies secret XRP plan, says price follows the market

David Schwartz, former chief technology officer of Ripple, has stated that the XRP token's value is primarily driven by broader cryptocurrency market trends. He spoke after disgruntled holders on X demanded explanations from the company's leadership.

Schwartz further dismissed the notion that Ripple is concealing a clandestine strategy for the digital asset.

A community member called on either CEO Brad Garlinghouse or Schwartz to respond to the frustration among XRP supporters and disclose what they called "the real plan." Schwartz responded that Ripple discusses its strategies frequently. "There's no secret plan we aren't telling you about," he wrote.

What Moves the XRP Price, According to Schwartz

A second user questioned why XRP does not appreciate even as Ripple deploys its ledger globally alongside the RLUSD stablecoin.

Schwartz replied that the XRP price is "largely dragged around by the market." Developments tied directly to the XRP Ledger are only a secondary factor, in his assessment.

"I've also talked about this. I think currently XRP's price is largely dragged around by the market and only secondarily affected by things specific to the XRP(L) space.

Go up the thread, ending here: https://t.co/Jij0RN9uYC"

— David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) November 9, 2026

The Ripple executive also referenced a 2023 post where he described that opinion as a personal intuition rather than a provable fact.

When pressed on whether XRP requires a higher valuation to deliver adequate liquidity on the ledger, Schwartz concurred. "The higher the price, the better," he wrote. He argued that a higher price would make liquidity more efficient and lower slippage.

Discontent has grown as XRP has shed more than half its value over the past twelve months.

Ripple has achieved several milestones recently, among them a national trust bank charter and an investment-grade rating for RLUSD.

On X, a third user contended that Ripple ought to find a more substantial use case for XRP beyond network transaction fees. Schwartz replied that no informed individual has suggested that XRP's role as "gas" would meaningfully influence its value.

Instead, he referenced an earlier post describing XRP's "privileged place on the ledger" as the sole asset any party can hold without a counterparty.

"I really do think it's hard to believe we will end up in a world where XRPL is successful but XRP fails to capture a good fraction of that value," Schwartz wrote.

Ripple Expands Its Bank Business in Europe

Ripple, in the meantime, continues to grow its institutional operations. The firm noted that euro-denominated stablecoins have expanded from roughly €50 million to €450 million since early 2024. Qivalis, a consortium of 37 European banks recently authorised by the Dutch central bank, intends to issue a euro stablecoin.

Issuance, however, is only one element, Ripple said:

Each bank still needs the custody, governance, and controls to hold the asset for clients.

The company stated that BBVA and DZ BANK already employ Ripple Custody for that purpose. Banks across Europe are also constructing stablecoin infrastructure on a large scale.

Nevertheless, Schwartz expects XRP's price to continue following the broader market first. Garlinghouse, meanwhile, recently dismissed rumours that Ripple is abandoning XRP in favour of RLUSD.