Ripple Denies Direct Control Over XRP Ledger Amid Centralization Debate

Ripple's control over XRP and the XRP Ledger has long been a topic of debate in the crypto industry. Recently, global asset manager 21Shares weighed in on this issue, stating that claims of direct control by Ripple are not true.

In a social media post, 21Shares assessed XRP as 'possibly the most misunderstood 13-year-old asset' and pointed to the validator structure that verifies XRP Ledger transactions as its key basis. The default trusted validator list on the XRP Ledger currently includes about 35 validators, with only one operated directly by Ripple.

The relationship between Ripple and XRP has led to claims of centralization, but 21Shares stressed that influence over software development must be distinguished from direct control over blockchain transaction validation. The XRP Ledger defines itself as a decentralized public blockchain in its official documents and explains that Ripple does not own or control the network.