Ripple CTO’s Early Bet on Ethereum Unveiled Amidst Ripple-Cardano Controversy

The post Ripple CTO’s Early Bet on Ethereum Unveiled Amidst Ripple-Cardano Controversy appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

David Schwartz, Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer has recently posted online the reason behind his early investment in Ethereum, which came out during an online argument with Cardano’s founder, Charles Hoskinson, over the controversial “ETH Gate” theory.

Schwartz’s Early Ethereum Investment

David Schwartz revealed about his early investment in Ethereum when an user put forward a question before him on X.

Not only did he reveal about how he gained access to Ethereum project during its early days, but also explained his personal connection with Ethereum’s co-founder, Vitalik Buterin. “I knew Vitalik. He invited me to participate. I wanted to support him, so I went in for 20 BTC. It got me 40,000 ETH. I thought of it as helping an acquaintance,” Schwartz wrote as a reply.

When ETH was priced at just $1, the Ripple CTO’s initial investment of 20 Bitcoins yielded him a good gain of 40,000 Ethereum tokens. However, what’s might sound funny to some users at Ethereum’s present price is that, Schwartz sold all his Ethereum holdings to fund the installation of solar panels in a house that he no longer owns. 

Schwartz feels that this decision was regrettable, as shortly after he sold all his Ethereum, the value of the tokens skyrocketed. According to him, he could have exceeded $100 million in gains, representing a 250,000% increase. 

The Ripple-Cardano Controversy

Cardano’s Charles Hoskinson and Ripple’s Schwartz remain engaged in their heated exchange regarding the “ETH Gate” theory, which alleges that Ethereum exerted undue influence on regulatory bodies, especially the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 

Nonetheless, Hoskinson emphasized that Ethereum’s alleged manipulation of regulatory outcomes is unfounded, thereby dismissing these claims as conspiracy theories. “No matter how many times you try to conflate the two statements, it won’t change reality,” Hoskinson stated.

In contrast, former SEC Director William Hinman might be potentially involved, Schwartz believes. He suggested that this relationship could have influenced regulatory decisions because of Hinman’s affiliation with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, a law firm connected to Ethereum. Schwartz also questioned whether Hinman was financially interested in Ethereum and whether he recused himself from related decisions during his tenure at the SEC.

XRP Price Update and Market Outlook

As of May 10, 2024, XRP, Ripple’s native cryptocurrency, traded at $0.519716 per XRP/USD, with a market cap of $28.77 billion. The price has seen a slight decline over the past 24 hours, with a decrease of 0.32%. However, XRP’s long-term potential remains promising, given its use case in cross-border payments and other applications.