What is XRP? 100 billion coins, one ledger and the role of Ripple

XRP is the cryptocurrency of the XRP Ledger, a public blockchain built for fast and cheap payments. All 100 billion XRP were created in one go in 2012; there is no mining and there are no new coins. The company Ripple uses XRP as a bridge currency in cross-border payments, but it owns neither the blockchain nor the coin outright. On Wednesday, November 4, 2026, XRP cost about €1.14 according to CoinGecko and ranked fifth among all cryptocurrencies with a market capitalisation of roughly €72 billion.