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- David Schwartz made XRPL Hub public revealing traffic stats, software state, and performance charts.
- He pushed back on validator rewards, warned smart contracts need caution and real-world purpose.
Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer David Schwartz has revealed detailed operational metrics of his XRPL Hub, shifting it from a quiet internal node to a public reference point. His update included connection information, software version, traffic performance, and graphs. According to Schwartz, the hub has been operating on version 2.6.2 for over a month without a single issue.
Schwartz also published latency patterns, peer connection counts, disconnection rates, and traffic load over time. Despite the system running below capacity, he noted that peer reservations have not been activated, though they can be if connection demand increases. The hostname and port are now public for XRPL operators looking to connect with a stable node.
This data release arrived during renewed discussions about how programmable the XRP Ledger should become. It coincided with increased questioning of whether features should be added purely to create validator incentives, a notion Schwartz has rejected directly.
My hub has been running 2.6.2 for more than a week now and there have been no issues. If you run an XRPL node, feel free to connect:
Hostname: hub . distributedagreement . com
Domain: distributedagreement . com
Port: 51235
PubKey:… pic.twitter.com/bcE3Dt4GPQ— David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) December 4, 2025
Schwartz Pushes for Measured Network Upgrades
In responses tied to the post, Schwartz disagreed with the idea of validators earning through protocol changes. He stated that such changes contradict the core principles of XRPL’s design. While he acknowledged that staking for holders might sound more reasonable, he warned this reason alone doesn’t justify altering the structure.
He also spoke about the dangers that come with major smart contract updates. These changes, he said, require heavy engineering work, may cause unexpected effects, and touch parts of the ledger that he believes are foundational. Even successful additions like Automated Market Makers (AMM), according to Schwartz, have not proven they can generate sustainable activity.
I think allowing validators to monetize validation is a terrible reason to add programmability. Allowing XRP holders to stake for revenue is a somewhat better reason. And adding programmability to expand the use cases for XRPL's core financial primitives is an even better one.
— David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) December 4, 2025
Schwartz stressed that any protocol expansion must be backed by real, demonstrated demand. Until then, the focus should be on increasing the use of XRPL’s financial tools in practical ways rather than designing features for speculative gains.
XRP Sees Rising Social Media Doubt as Price Slumps
The XRP token has faced a sharp downturn over the last two months. Data from Santiment shows a 31% decline during this period, mirroring trends across much of the digital asset market. Despite interest from institutional investors and new spot ETF products, XRP fell from an early October high of $3.10 to $2.06.
Social media activity around the token has reached its highest level of doubt in over a month. Santiment reports that current levels of fear and uncertainty are even higher than those seen in late November, when the token dropped to $1.82. At that time, the market sentiment turned deeply negative, but right after that XRP surged 22% in the following three days, reaching $2.28 by November 24.
Santiment has pointed out the historical pattern of price rebounds during periods of intense pessimism. The analytics firm said, “As of now, an opportunity appears to be emerging just like 2 weeks ago,” suggesting potential near-term recovery based on social reaction patterns.
