One of the founders of Omni Network highlights the advantage XRP has over Bitcoin that justifies its inclusion in the U.S. strategic reserve.
Notably, the comments come as the crypto community remains divided amid speculation over which crypto assets might be included in the U.S. crypto reserve. The discussion centers on whether Bitcoin (BTC) should dominate or if other assets, like XRP, also deserve consideration.
These commentaries gained momentum after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order establishing a Presidential Working Group to explore the creation of “digital asset stockpile.”
The use of “digital asset” instead of “Bitcoin” fueled concerns among Bitcoin proponents, who fear the reserve might include assets beyond BTC. While the order does not mention XRP, these Bitcoiners have singled out the token, leading to an aggressive campaign.
Amid this aggression, Omni Network co-founder Austin King has highlighted why XRP could be a worthy choice, outlining its advantages over Bitcoin in terms of design and functionality.
Approaching $200,000,000,000 in market cap $XRP is one of the top assets being considered for the U.S. strategic crypto reserve.
However, most people are missing the real reason why it might be included.
Here’s what $XRP brings to the table that $BTC does not: pic.twitter.com/GlzQF8vQVi
— Austin King (@0xASK) January 28, 2025
XRP’s Performance Benefits Stand Out
King argued that including only Bitcoin in a U.S. crypto reserve would limit its utility. While Bitcoin was designed to serve as a decentralized store of value, XRP was specifically created to modernize and enhance the financial system.
According to King, Bitcoin prioritizes decentralization, which leads to slower transaction speeds. Meanwhile, XRP focuses on high performance, making it a more practical option for onboarding financial institutions.
To support his points, King shared a video of Stefan Thomas, former CTO of Ripple, who outlined XRP’s technical advantages over Bitcoin.
$BTC maximizes for decentralization — causing it to be extremely slow.$XRP maximizes for performance — enabling it to onboard financial institutions.
This has serious implications for the U.S. strategic reserve: pic.twitter.com/KHYMo4Hk9a
— Austin King (@0xASK) January 28, 2025
Thomas stressed that XRP is over 1,000 times faster than Bitcoin in terms of transaction confirmation times. For context, XRP processes transactions in approximately 3.2 seconds, while Bitcoin’s confirmation time is more variable, averaging 10 minutes or more.
The former Ripple CTO also noted that XRP has more predictable and cost-effective transactions. While Bitcoin transactions can cost several dollars or more, XRP transactions cost only a fraction of a cent.
Notably, a blend of this cost-effectiveness and the impressive speed makes XRP more suitable for enterprise-level use cases, according to Thomas. King supports this stance, highlighting the benefits as evidence that XRP could provide more value to a strategic reserve than Bitcoin alone.
Diversification is Important
Speaking further, King noted that diversification is important in building a crypto reserve. Including only Bitcoin would restrict the reserve to a single use case, which is acting as “digital gold.”
In contrast, adding XRP would ensure the reserve leverages the full spectrum of blockchain technology, including fast and affordable financial transactions. It bears mentioning that Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse also advocates for a similar diversity, calling for a level playing field where the reserve could include other assets in addition to Bitcoin.
Upholding this point, King argued that blockchains offer more than just decentralized value storage. They have the potential to create an open, global financial foundation. He believes high-performance networks like XRP are essential to achieving this vision.
According to the Omni Network co-founder, U.S. policymakers appear to understand the need for a diversified approach. Notably, previous reports suggested that the government could be looking to prioritize “Made in America” crypto assets for the reserve.
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