tl;dr
Renowned angel investor Jason Calacanis has criticized the XRP token, affiliated with Ripple, as a "centralized controlled security." He believes that the potential approval of XRP exchange-traded funds could lead to chaos in the markets and render securities laws worthless. Calacanis argues that XR...
Jason Calacanis Criticizes XRP and Warns of Potential Chaos in Markets
Renowned angel investor Jason Calacanis has criticized the XRP token, affiliated with Ripple, as a "centralized controlled security." He believes that the potential approval of XRP exchange-traded funds could lead to chaos in the markets and render securities laws worthless. Calacanis argues that XRP should only be available to sophisticated investors due to its perceived danger.
Ripple's ownership of a significant amount of XRP tokens has raised centralization concerns, despite proponents arguing for the network's neutrality and decentralization. The XRP Ledger has faced criticism for its reliance on a list of "trusted" validators and a recent halt in block production. There is a reported 78% chance of an XRP ETF being approved this year, according to Polymarket users.
In fact, Calacanis believes that the launch of XRP ETFs could result in full-blown "chaos" that could threaten the country's "stable and controlled" markets. "There will be chaos in the markets as a million startups, funds and grifters start dumping 50% of their coins on retail while slowly selling the 50% they own and control," he said.
Meanwhile, XRP Ledger has long attracted strong criticism from naysayers due to centralization concerns. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse recently stated that the company owns roughly $100 billion worth of XRP tokens. At the same time, XRP proponents argue that the network is neutral and decentralized. XRPL transactions are processed by a list of "trusted" validators on unique node lists (UNLs). As of now, there are 187 validators on the registry. Earlier this month, XRPL attracted fresh criticism after briefly halting block production.