Ripple’s XRP Sales: $109B Distributed Over 13 Years

The XRP Ledger was launched in 2012 with a fixed, pre-mined supply of 100 billion tokens, eliminating mechanisms like mining or inflation. The initial distribution was stark: 80 billion XRP were allocated to the company that became Ripple, while the remaining 20 billion were distributed among founders and early insiders, including Jed McCaleb, Arthur Britto, and David Schwartz. By comparing these original allocations with current on-chain holdings, the scale of the subsequent distribution becomes clear.

Today, Ripple and its named executives collectively control about 41.485 billion XRP. The company itself holds approximately 37.685 billion, with the vast majority—34.185 billion XRP—locked in a structured escrow system. The remainder is in accessible wallets. Among the executives, Chairman Chris Larsen holds about 2.5 billion XRP across eight wallets, and co-founder Arthur Britto controls roughly 1.3 billion. Notably, co-founder and chief technology officer David Schwartz’s holdings have historically peaked at only around 26 million XRP, a fraction of his peers’ multi-billion balances.

Subtracting these current holdings from the original 100 billion supply reveals the core finding: Ripple and its executives have sold or otherwise distributed approximately 58.515 billion XRP over the past 13 years. This represents the majority of the tokens originally placed under their control.

The sheer volume of these sales—58.515 billion tokens—naturally raises questions about perpetual downward price pressure. However, the timing and method of distribution have been critical. XRP’s price journey began at approximately $0.00587 in August 2013 and now trades near $1.88, representing a gain of over 31,000% despite the continuous influx of tokens from insiders.

A key mechanism in managing this supply was Ripple’s 2017 implementation of an escrow system. This program locked 55 billion of the company’s XRP, scheduling the release of up to 1 billion tokens per month. Any portion not used for sales or ecosystem incentives in a given month is returned to escrow, creating a predictable and limited supply schedule. As of the analysis, 34.185 billion XRP remain locked under this system, providing a known future supply curve.

Cumulatively, the 58.515 billion XRP sold would be worth approximately $109 billion at today’s prices. This distribution did not occur in a vacuum; it coincided with significant ecosystem development, intense legal battles with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and multiple full-market crypto cycles. The data suggests the sales were executed in a phased, managed manner rather than as disruptive market dumps.

The concurrent narrative of massive insider distribution and extreme price appreciation presents a complex picture for XRP. It challenges the simplistic view that large-scale selling by founders and a controlling entity must inevitably suppress an asset’s value. In this case, the escrow system appears to have successfully mitigated sudden supply shocks, allowing the market to absorb new tokens gradually.

This managed approach has allowed distribution to proceed alongside Ripple’s efforts to build utility for XRP in cross-border payments and other use cases. The sustained price growth over 13 years indicates that demand factors—including speculation, partnership announcements, and legal developments—have, at times, significantly outweighed the selling pressure from the original allocations.

Looking ahead, the remaining escrowed supply of 34.185 billion XRP represents a known overhang. However, the established precedent of a controlled release schedule suggests Ripple is likely to continue its phased distribution strategy. The long-term market performance of XRP will ultimately depend on whether organic demand and real-world utility can continue to absorb this managed supply while navigating the evolving regulatory landscape for cryptocurrencies.