The U.S. Federal Reserve’s new public questionnaire on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) brought up Ripple and its XRP cryptocurrency numerous times. Of the 584 pages of responses, XRP was mentioned over 100 times – signaling its potential relevance to the Fed’s eventual CBDC decisions.
Opinions widely varied on risks and benefits of digital assets like XRP. Some respondents urged caution in collaborating with “illegal” cryptos, while others highlighted unique capabilities like offline transactions that Ripple and the XRP Ledger provide.
Several submissions proposed the XRP Ledger could enable CBDC sidechains or cross-border bridges, minimizing the need for a direct Fed-issued digital currency. Crypto advocates even suggested the Fed utilize Ripple’s technology as a foundation for CBDCs.
The attention on XRP comes despite Ripple’s ongoing legal battle with the SEC. The company continues expanding its financial infrastructure, recently acquiring a major crypto firm in Switzerland. Ripple also partners with HSBC and Mastercard, gaining traction in banking and payments – two critical areas for CBDCs.
As the Federal Reserve weighs options for a possible US CBDC, it will be hard to ignore the clear interest from some citizens in empowering projects like Ripple. And Ripple is certainly poised to play a role, as its history of partnerships hints at the company becoming an important bridge between governments, CBDCs, and the world of private crypto innovation.
