Hold on to your hats, folks, because a cryptocurrency researcher has just dropped a bombshell! They’re not mincing words, labeling XRP as potentially the “biggest financial scam the world has ever seen.” Ouch!

This bold claim comes from Aylo, a researcher with alpha please, who took to X (formerly Twitter) on March 21st to share their thoughts. In their post, Aylo pointed out some pretty stark numbers: the XRP ledger’s decentralized exchange (DEX) volume over 24 hours was a mere $44,036. Now, compare that to the total value locked (TVL) on the ledger, which DeFiLlama data showed to be a whopping $80.63 million, and you can see why eyebrows might be raised.

“Seriously, I think XRP could be the biggest financial scam ever,” Aylo stated plainly. “Nothing that has produced so little value has ever gotten close to this kind of market cap ($140B). The XRP ledger’s volume in the last 24 hours? Just $44k, according to DefiLlama.”

As you might imagine, this post stirred up quite a buzz! So, let’s get straight to the million-dollar question: is XRP actually a scam? The short answer is no. But let’s dive deeper and see where this whole misunderstanding might have come from.

First off, David Schwartz, Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer, jumped into the conversation, firing back at the claim. He pointed out that the data Aylo shared in their screenshot only reflected the activity of automated market makers (AMMs) on the XRP ledger.

Adding to the counter-arguments, Vet, a validator on the dUNL for the XRP ledger, responded with a different set of figures. Vet’s numbers painted a very different picture, suggesting a 24-hour DEX volume closer to a much more substantial $9,000,000. He also emphasized the XRP ledger’s potential for growth.

So, where does this leave us? It’s true that the XRP ledger’s DEX volume isn’t as high as some other cryptocurrencies out there – not even close in some cases. But does this automatically mean XRP is a financial scam? Absolutely not. And there are some good reasons why these numbers might be lower than expected.

Why XRP’s low dex volume doesn’t make it a financial scam

Here’s the thing: XRP isn’t trying to win the DeFi popularity contest. Its main goal isn’t to be the king of decentralized finance. Instead, XRP is focusing on being the go-to for speedy and cheap international money transfers, acting as a bridge currency for banks and financial institutions. Because of this different focus, looking at TVL to judge XRP’s success is like trying to measure apples with oranges – it’s just not the right tool.

Think about it this way: unlike networks like Ethereum (ETH) or Binance Smart Chain (BSC), which are buzzing with smart contracts and DeFi applications, the XRP Ledger (XRPL) is built for speed and handling lots of transactions. Programmable features that drive up TVL on other chains? Not really XRP’s priority.

The XRPL isn’t about locking up tons of crypto in smart contracts for things like staking or yield farming – those activities that typically pump up TVL figures.

Instead, XRP shines when it comes to zipping value across borders quickly, often without needing to lock up assets for long periods. This is why TVL just doesn’t capture what XRP is really about, or the real-world impact it’s having.

Right now, XRP is actually within striking distance of overtaking Tether (USDT) to become the third-largest cryptocurrency in the world. Its market cap has jumped by a massive $100 billion in the last year alone! And it’s not just hype – there’s real trading activity happening. In the past 24 hours, around $2.58 billion worth of XRP has changed hands, according to data we grabbed from CoinMarketCap.

As of right now, XRP is trading at around $2.44. Despite some dips after the initial excitement around Ripple’s legal win against the SEC, it’s still up by a solid 17.03% since the start of the year.

And it looks like analysts are becoming more and more optimistic about XRP’s future. Ryan Lee from Bitget, for example, thinks that if XRP can stay above the $2.50 mark, we could see a pretty significant jump all the way to $10. Exciting times ahead?

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