Ripple is the encompassing name for the cryptocurrency platform, with its transactional protocol being XRP, similar to how Ethereum is the platform for trading Ether. Like other cryptocurrencies, Ripple is based on a distributed ledger network that relies on multiple parties to validate transactions instead of a single centralized authority. This allows for transactions worldwide, with transfer fees much lower than those of bitcoin. Unlike other cryptocurrencies, XRP transfers are nearly immediate, requiring no typical confirmation time.

Ripple was originally founded by a single company, Ripple Labs, and continues to be backed by it, rather than a larger network of developers, like bitcoin. Also, Ripple does not have a fluctuating amount of its currency in circulation. While bitcoin has a continually growing pool with an eventual maximum, and Ethereum theoretically has no limit, Ripple was created with all of its 100 billion XRP tokens right from the start. This number is maintained with no mining, and most of the tokens are owned and held by Ripple Labs itself — around 60 billion at the latest count.

Even at the recently reduced value of around $0.50 per XRP, that means Ripple Labs is currently holding around $20 billion worth of the cryptocurrency (note: Ripple’s price recently crashed hard and may be worth far less than $60 billion by the time you read this). It holds 55 billion XRP in an escrow account, which allows it to sell up to a billion per month if it chooses to fund new projects and acquisitions. Selling such an amount would likely have a drastic effect on the cryptocurrency’s value, and isn’t something Ripple Labs plans to do anytime soon.

In reality, Ripple Labs aims to utilize the technology behind XRP to enable faster banking transactions worldwide. While Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are based on separating financial transactions from traditional currency financial organizations, Ripple is almost the opposite in every sense.

You can find the XRP by Ripple price on this page, along with market capitalization and additional statistics.