2019 was a rough year for XRP, with the embattled cryptocurrency plummeting over 40% from where it started the year. The poor performance came about as the aggregated crypto markets experienced a mixed year, with Bitcoin surging nearly 100% while some altcoins only incurred tempered gains or losses.
It is important to note that Ripple – the company with close ties to XRP – has long been viewed as a source of much of this bearishness amongst analysts and investors alike, primarily due to its massive quarterly token sales.
The Ripple CEO is now claiming that his company cannot control the price of XRP due to its decentralization, but some critics are crying foul, explaining that the crypto is far from being decentralized.
XRP Still Caught in Firm Downtrend Due to Pressure from Ripple
Earlier this week, XRP attempted to rally when its bulls propelled it from lows of $0.19 to highs of $0.23. This rally, although overtly bullish initially, ultimately proved to be fleeting and just led to another retrace.
After tapping these highs, bears quickly stepped up and pushed the cryptocurrency’s price back down to the lower-$0.20 region, continuing to ramp up the selling pressure until it hit $0.20 earlier today, which was closely followed by a bounce to its current price of $0.21.
One source of the majority of the downwards pressure on the token in recent times has been Ripple’s quarterly token sales, which results in a large quantity of the digital asset being offloaded onto the open markets. This has led many investors to claim that the company is knowingly manipulating the token’s price.
Ripple’s CEO – Brad Garlinghouse – however does not believe that his company can control the price of XRP, a sentiment that he shared during a recent interview with CNN.
🔥 Brad Garlinghouse at Ripple say Ripple can't control the price of #XRP. #XRPCommunity #crypto pic.twitter.com/LfgiAX5dsL
— HODL (@HodlStyle) January 7, 2020
Tone Vays – a popular Bitcoin analyst and outspoken Ripple critic – fired back at these claims, telling his followers that the token is highly centralized, referencing his belief that Ripple could instantly stop rogue nations from utilizing the token, if given the order.
“I said it before & will again. @Ripple claims their $XRP scam coin is decentralized & uncontrollable but if Iran & North Korea start using #Ripple as global currency & value transfer all it will take is a phone call from the US authorities to Garlinghouse —> ‘Shitcoin Gone’” he said.
I said it before & will again.@Ripple claims their $XRP scam coin is decentralized & uncontrollable but if Iran & North Korea start using #Ripple as global currency & value transfer all it will take is a phone call from the US authorities to Garlinghouse —> "Shitcoin Gone" https://t.co/DGf3Ne571d
— Tone Vays (#ActivateTaproot) (@ToneVays) January 10, 2020
It remains unclear what 2020 has in store for the embattled token, but it is highly likely that fears regarding Ripple’s influence over the cryptocurrency’s price will continue to provide it with some drag.