Since the launch of the XRP Ledger in 2012, Ripple Labs and its executives have sold approximately 58.5 billion XRP tokens, with a cumulative sales value of around $109 billion, according to an analysis of on-chain data.
Key Figures: Initial Allocation: Ripple was allocated 100 billion XRP at genesis.
Total Sold: ~58.5 billion XRP (58.5% of the total initial supply).
Current Holdings: ~41.485 billion XRP remain in company/executive-controlled wallets.
Price Appreciation: Despite massive sales, XRP's price has risen ~31,000% from its earliest nominal value.
Ripple's Stated Rationale: The company has consistently framed these sales as necessary to "address concerns about centralization" and to fund operations, develop the XRP Ledger ecosystem, and incentivize institutional adoption. Sales occur via programmatic means and direct institutional placements.
Market Context & Criticism: Supply Overhang: The scale of sales has created a persistent supply overhang, which many analysts believe has suppressed XRP's price relative to other major cryptocurrencies with less inflationary pressure from founders/companies.
Centralization Debate: Despite the sales, Ripple remains the single largest holder of XRP, and the sales process itself is centrally managed, continuing to fuel debates about the asset's decentralization.
Regulatory Scrutiny: These sales were a core focus of the SEC's lawsuit against Ripple, which alleged they constituted unregistered securities offerings.
This data underscores the fundamental tension in XRP's economic model: a for-profit company acting as the primary steward and distributor of a decentralized digital asset. The $109 billion in sales represents one of the largest wealth transfers in crypto history from a single entity to the market. #bnb #BTC #Binance #crypto #CryptoNews
