Billionaire pro-Bitcoin investor Mike Novogratz has surprised the crypto community by expressing a newfound appreciation for XRP and Ripple during a recent podcast. Novogratz, who previously doubted XRP’s longevity due to Ripple’s substantial ownership stake, admitted he had been proven wrong and commended the XRP community for its dedication to the project.
“I was sceptical that XRP would have lasting power because payment company Ripple owns 60% of XRP. And I was like, ‘That just doesn’t seem a proposition that’s going to work.’ And I’ve been dead wrong,” confessed Novogratz during the podcast.
Novogratz went on to praise Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple’s CEO, and the entire Ripple team for their efforts. He acknowledged Ripple’s transformation into a formidable institution in the payment landscape and credited the passionate XRP community for actively supporting and promoting the XRP ecosystem.
Referring to the “XRP Army,” Novogratz drew parallels between the dedication of the XRP community and that of the Bitcoin community. He noted that both represent places for people to store value, stating, “The XRP Army is real; they care about their ecosystem and their coin. Yes, it’s got a use case, but broadly, the use case is the same as Bitcoin. It’s another place for people to want to store value.”
Novogratz’s unexpected acknowledgement of XRP sparked significant attention from the XRP community, with many expressing surprise and gratitude for the positive recognition. In response to a tweet by prominent XRP influencer Crypto Eri highlighting Novogratz’s comments, one commenter humorously inquired whether Novogratz has now become an XRP investor or if there is still confusion on his end about XRP’s purpose for existence.
During the podcast, Novogratz also pondered the broader question of how many crypto ecosystems can coexist, considering the current total market cap of the crypto industry running into trillions of dollars. He highlighted the crypto industry’s relatively small size compared to global capital markets and humorously illustrated the point by envisioning a tug-of-war between all Apple employees and those in the crypto industry.
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