XRP is the native digital asset for a technology that is fast, low-cost, and scalable for international payments. The token is an entry domain for the XRP Ledger (XRPL) a decentralized, open-source blockchain that can settle and confirm transactions in only 3–5 seconds. There’s no need for energy-intensive mining, like with Bitcoin or Ethereum. All 100 billion XRP were instead created at launch in 2012 by engineers David Schwartz, Jed McCaleb and Arthur Britto, who also co-founded the company Ripple.

Instead of relying on miners to validate transactions like you might have with Proof-of-Work or validators in Proof-of-Stake, the XRP Ledger uses a unique consensus protocol which means transactions are confirmed through a network of independent validators. XRP thus becomes incredibly energy-efficient and very performant, processing more than 1,500 tx/sec at very low cost typically a fraction of a cent.

Ripple utilizes XRP to power certain payment solutions for banks and other financial establishments, the XRP Ledger functions externally and can be harnessed by anybody to create applications or integer values. XRP is a bridge currency used for cross-border payments, providing real-time conversion between fiat currencies.