XRP Could Challenge Bitcoin With One Catch

Schwartz: XRP Surpassing Bitcoin Is Possible, but the Path Is Narrow

Ripple CTO emeritus David Schwartz (@JoelKatz) has said $XRP could one day overtake $BTC in market capitalization, but he was careful to frame the scenario on his own terms. Speaking during an X Spaces discussion, Schwartz said that would happen not because Bitcoin loses value, but because the price of XRP rises faster.

During the X Spaces session, Schwartz was asked directly whether XRP has a chance to overtake Bitcoin. He said that is possible, though not due to a drop in Bitcoin's value. "Yeah, I do," Schwartz said, adding, "But I think it wouldn't happen from Bitcoin shrinking. It would happen from XRP growing faster than Bitcoin."

He also predicted that the broader digital asset sector will grow considerably, and that in such a scenario the top cryptocurrencies might all rise in value rather than compete for market share.

XRP Ledger Speed and Functionality at the Core of the Argument

Schwartz argued that the XRP Ledger could capture a greater share of that growth because of its technology, referencing its speed and versatility compared to Bitcoin. "The XRP Ledger gets more of that growth because of its higher functionality and or higher speed," he said, adding that users may prefer features "that Bitcoin can't support."

The technical case has some foundation. Transactions on the XRP Ledger settle within 3 to 5 seconds and the network supports up to 1,500 transactions per second, compared to Bitcoin's roughly 7 TPS. Bitcoin prioritizes decentralization and censorship resistance through proof-of-work mining, accepting slower base-layer throughput as a tradeoff, while the XRP Ledger optimizes for speed and low cost through a federated consensus model.

Still, the scale of the challenge should not be understated. Schwartz's comment describes a possibility, not an imminent forecast. For XRP to flip Bitcoin at today's valuations, it would need to close a market-cap gap of roughly $1.49 trillion.

There are, however, signs of growing institutional interest in $XRP. XRP ETFs previously attracted $110.49 million in their strongest week of 2026, taking cumulative inflows to roughly $1.66 billion, with Goldman Sachs emerging as the largest disclosed XRP ETF holder at roughly $87.4 million. XRP also enters the debate with a clearer U.S. regulatory position following the end of Ripple's long-running SEC litigation.

Schwartz did not put a timeline on his prediction, and his remarks read more as a long-term observation than a near-term call. He did add, however, "I honestly have to say, I think XRP surging is probably more likely than not."

Sources:
CoinGape: Ripple CTO Emeritus David Schwartz on XRP overtaking Bitcoin
CoinPaper: David Schwartz Says XRP Could Flip Bitcoin as $25 Math Looms
Spark Money: Bitcoin vs XRP Payment Speed and Cost Compared