Ripple Chief Technology Officer David Schwartz believes XRP could eventually overtake Bitcoin in market capitalization, stating directly during an X Spaces discussion that he sees it as possible.
Schwartz clarified the scenario would not require Bitcoin's value to decline. Instead, he expects XRP to grow significantly faster than Bitcoin as the overall digital asset market expands, with XRP capturing greater market share.
That growth hinges on adoption of the XRP Ledger (XRPL). Schwartz emphasized speed and functionality as key advantages—the network handles many financial functions directly through built-in rules, reducing risks associated with external smart contracts and making it suitable for large-scale financial applications.
Recent XRPL upgrades have included security enhancements for protocol-level permission features and node improvements to prevent ledger issues. U.S. spot XRP exchange-traded funds have accumulated approximately $1.70 billion in inflows since approval. Goldman Sachs is among publicly disclosed institutional XRP holders.
XRP previously flipped Ethereum to become the second-largest cryptocurrency during the 2017–2018 bull run, reaching an $86 billion market cap. Today's gap is wider. XRP trades at $1.36 with a market cap of approximately $85.07 billion. Bitcoin trades at $77,194 with a market cap around $1.55 trillion.
To surpass Bitcoin at current levels, XRP would need to close a $1.46 trillion market cap gap. If Bitcoin's valuation stays flat, XRP's price would need to rise roughly 18 times to $25 per token.
