- Ripple supporters challenge Caitlin Long’s views on XRP Ledger decentralization.
- David Schwartz invites Caitlin Long to discuss XRP facts and progress.
- XRP defenders highlight decentralization, growing use cases, and innovation advancements.
Caitlin Long, founder and CEO of Avanti Financial Group, recently faced backlash from the XRP community after her critical comments about Ripple during an appearance on the “Gold Goats ‘n Guns” podcast. Long expressed doubts about the future of the XRP Ledger, stating that it would never “take over” the financial sector.
She claimed that Ripple had not made any considerable improvements in more than ten years and that the XRP Ledger was still a centralized network, which, as she stated, concerned banking institutions.
Besides challenging Ripple’s technology, Long also criticized the company’s transition to stablecoins, referring to it as an “admission” that the XRP Ledger has failed to achieve the level of adoption that the company had hoped.
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Long also criticized the tokenomics of the project, saying that people who take money out of a project in advance ought to be considered with suspicion.
Although Ripple did not launch an Initial Coin Offering (ICO), Long cited the pre-mining of 100 billion XRP tokens, of which the founders received 20 billion and 55 billion were put into escrow.
The distribution has been a source of contention among Ripple critics, some of whom argue that it indicates centralization, a concern that was at the heart of the 2020 SEC lawsuit.
Ripple Defenders Respond, Emphasizing Decentralization and Network Growth
In response to the criticisms, Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer, David Schwartz, offered to discuss the facts about Ripple, the XRP Ledger, and its RLUSD stablecoin with Long when she is ready. Schwartz’s willingness to engage underscores Ripple’s confidence in its technology and its openness to clarifying any misconceptions.
Moreover, Ripple enthusiasts from the XRP army were quick to respond to Long’s statements, with many, including Vet (@Vet_X0) on Twitter, claiming that Long’s comments indicated a lack of understanding of how decentralized the XRP Ledger was.
“She has no clue what she is talking about, but she talks with such confidence about it,” Vet commented.
She has no clue what she is talking about, but she talks with such confidence about it.
1) Ripple never did an ICO. XRP was worth nothing when the XRP Ledger started and all 100B put into the genesis account.
2) The XRP Ledger is decentralized. Either it’s ignorance or lack of… https://t.co/yQNtGe81XL
— Vet (@Vet_X0) August 6, 2025
Vet argued that XRP was not particularly valuable when the network was first introduced and that Ripple had not held an ICO. He also pointed out the decentralization of the XRP Ledger, which has more than 100 validators and more than 1,000 nodes run by individuals and companies.
This decentralization enables anyone to join the network, operate infrastructure, or even fork the code, further refuting Long’s arguments of centralization.
Ripple’s Progress and Future Innovation Highlighted by Supporters
Vet also highlighted the XRP Ledger’s ongoing progress, noting its growing business use cases, expanding developer ecosystem, and development of a highly liquid decentralized exchange (DEX).
The RLUSD stablecoin, issued on the XRP Ledger, was mentioned as another example of Ripple’s commitment to innovation in the blockchain space.
Nevertheless, even though Long is unsure about the position of the Ripple ecosystem, Ripple enthusiasts remain optimistic about its future success. The ecosystem features a strong solution for international payments and financial applications on the blockchain.
Ripple supporters still believe that the XRP Ledger’s decentralization principle is an excellent vision of the future.
As the debate continues, Ripple remains focused on advancing its technology and demonstrating its relevance in the rapidly evolving blockchain and cryptocurrency landscape.
Also Read: XRP ETF Approval May Hit a Roadblock as SEC’s Crenshaw Blocks Progress
