Welcome, crypto enthusiasts! If you’re reading this article, you most likely have heard of Ripple, one of the most popular altcoins that is also a worthy addition to most investment portfolios. However, if you’re new to the sector, you might wonder if this project has any practical applications because you want to make sure that it will provide you with a return.
Chris Larsen and Jed McCaleb created the Ripple blockchain in 2012 to enable currency exchanges, low-cost international money transfers, and fast transactions. The network uses XRP as the native token, so those who want to buy Ripple should look for this cryptocurrency in exchanges. The project is gaining more popularity in the altcoins sector, especially after it won against the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Discussing Ripple and XRP
The company Ripple was initially founded in 2004 by Ryan Fugger, who wanted to provide online users with the option to create their own money and access a decentralized monetary system. He aimed to develop a more efficient system than traditional banking, one that encourages user interactions. The company took a step further in 2012 when Chris Larsen and Jed McCaleb founded Ripple Labs and put the basis of a peer-to-peer network that validates transactions.
XRP is a digital currency developed to allow users to make money transactions around the world. It functions similarly to other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, but like most crypto projects, it also has a series of unique features. The most successful cryptocurrencies stand out on the market for their special characteristics, and Ripple is one of them. Because XRP facilitates international transfers without the involvement of a bank, it enables more reliable, affordable, and faster operations.
Compared with other digital currencies, XRP is faster because the blockchain takes only 4 seconds to settle a transaction. Bitcoin, for example, needs around an hour to settle a transaction, which could be too long for some investors.
Ripple can process around 1.500 transactions every second and is more scalable than other altcoins.
How does Ripple work?
Those interested in purchasing XRP should learn how the project functions because, as stated earlier, it’s a little bit different than the others. It relies on the Ripple Protocol Consensus Algorithm to process transactions and validate blocks through designated servers that compare records until they achieve a supermajority agreement. This mechanism allows Ripple to process more transactions in a shorter period than the majority of blockchain networks. Institutional investors can use XRP or another currency to complete cross-border payments via Ripple. For example, when a user wants to send euros to another user in dollars, Ripple will use the messaging system to identify the most affordable solution, which might imply using XRP, another cryptocurrency, or a traditional currency. Ripple’s flexibility enables institutional investors to maintain a sense of control over their operations and cut down transaction fees.
Ripple’s main characteristics
Ripple was designed as a project that could revolutionize the global transactions sector because it provides features like scalability, cost-effectiveness, and speed. It’s a worthy competitor for the traditional banking sector but also for other crypto projects, especially those meant to manage large volumes of international payments.
Ripple can handle around 1.500 transactions per second, but the network developers aim to scale the number up to over 50,000. While other ecosystems grow with each new transaction, Ripple maintains its efficiency by pruning older transactions. This mechanism allows it to deter network congestion and boost its performance.
– An XRP transaction costs around 0.00001 XRP, which is significantly lower than other cryptocurrencies. The institutional investors that opt for Ripple can reduce their operational costs by 60%.
– Ripple needs less than 5 seconds to process transactions, which is quite speedy in comparison to Bitcoin or traditional banking systems.
Use cases of Ripple
Ripple has become one of investors’ top choices because it was backed by several institutional investors, such as IDG Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and Google Ventures, which made the public trust its features more. However, to decide if Ripple is the right addition to your investment portfolio, it’s essential to examine its use cases.
It facilitates cross-border payments
XRP international transactions are affordable and nearly instant, which could provide both individual and institutional investors with countless benefits if they need to make cross-border payments. Ripple collaborates with a series of financial institutions and banks at the moment and is running a payment platform called xCurrent to complete transactions.
It can be used for micropayments
Ripple allows digital users to make micropayments without dealing with a middleman like a credit card company, which eases the process and makes people feel more comfortable. This use case is essential for microtransactions and things like Pay-per-view content.
It can be used in e-commerce
Companies looking to expand their operations find this use case vital because it provides them with a cheap and fast payment solution so they can improve their customer service.
Banks use Ripple
Banks use XRP, the native token of the Ripple blockchain, to complete international transactions quickly and with low associated costs.
It can be used to create smart contracts
We mentioned earlier that Ripple, like Ethereum, can be used to create and run smart contracts, agreements that execute themselves when a set of conditions is met.
Ripple enables P2P lending
A popular use case of Ripple is peer-to-peer lending, which is a helpful solution for digital users when they struggle with getting funding from traditional institutions. Ripple allows crypto users to lend and borrow funds without dealing with a third party as a bank.
It can be used to pay for insurance
Crypto users often prefer to pay for services like insurance with digital currencies because the process is often more efficient and quicker.
Ripple improves the supply chain
Over the years, supply chains have dealt with a wide array of issues, so Ripple has been providing them with solutions to improve management and tracking. Organizations integrating the Ripple blockchain in their operations ensure their goods are delivered on time.
