thecryptobasic.com 
$XRP proponents have pointed out the crypto asset’s impressive long-term performance following criticisms from the Cardano founder.
For context, the Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson recently criticized Ripple’s holdings and $XRP’s tokenomics, arguing that the asset does not boast value appreciation for its holders.
Key Points
- Charles Hoskinson argued that Ripple funds its operations by selling pre-mined $XRP, leaving holders with no value appreciation.
- Community members have pushed back against this claim, pointing out $XRP’s historical performance.
- $XRP has increased 20,450% over the past decade despite recent price struggles.
- The token has also outperformed traditional market indices like the S&P 500 and NASDAQ over five years.
- $XRP has gained 11x this cycle, while Cardano only sees a 6x increase within the same period.
Cardano Founder Questions $XRP’s Value Model
Notably, Charles Hoskinson made his recent comments during an interview with Wendy O on The O Show, in which he questioned $XRP’s value model.
He said Ripple holds a large pre-mined supply of $XRP and sells some of it to fund its business, including acquisitions and other assets. To him, this allows the company to benefit while token holders do not benefit from any value appreciation.
Hoskinson also argued that $XRP holders do not have legal ownership of Ripple’s assets and do not benefit from features like staking or revenue-sharing. He suggested that this was similar to how Tether works, as a single company captures most of the value while users hold a tradable asset tied to a network.
He added that $XRP can still see short-term price jumps from news or hype, but he believes those moves are not linked to long-term demand or steady value appreciation.
$XRP Community Responds with Performance Data
Hoskinson’s comments triggered reactions from the $XRP community, especially his claim that $XRP has not shown meaningful price growth. Some users responded with historical data. One of them, researcher SMQKE, presented documents that confirmed $XRP’s long-term performance.
For instance, one document suggested that $XRP had risen by more than 10,000% over the past ten years. However, updated figures show that the token has gained over 20,000% in ten years. Specifically, $XRP traded at $0.00681 at the end of April 2016 and now changed hands at $1.40, marking a 20,450% increase.
SMQKE also compared $XRP’s performance with major stock indices. Notably, in April 2021, the S&P 500 stood at 3,992 points, while the NASDAQ Composite was at 13,414.
Today, the NASDAQ has climbed to 24,468, an 82% increase, while the S&P 500 has reached 7,126, marking a 78% rise. Over the same period, $XRP moved from $0.57 in April 2021 to $1.40, showing a 145% increase.
SMQKE also highlighted $XRP’s performance over the past three years, noting that the token had gained 300% gains within this period. However, $XRP’s recent declines have reduced this gain to 225%. While this is lower than the earlier estimate, it still represents a strong return.
$XRP Against Cardano
SMQKE’s commentary came in response to a disclosure from a pseudonymous $XRP community member, who countered Hoskinson’s claim by comparing $XRP’s and Cardano’s performances over the current market cycle.
The user pointed out that Cardano moved from a low of $0.21 to a high of $1.32, a 6x gain, but has since fallen back to around $0.24, close to where it started.
In comparison, $XRP rose from $0.32 to $3.65, representing an 11x gain, and now trades around $1.43, still holding above its earlier levels. According to the community member, $XRP surged more during the cycle and has also held its gains better than Cardano.
$XRP’s Longer-Term Performance
Meanwhile, Vandell Aljarrah, co-founder of The Black Swan Capitalist, also discussed $XRP’s long-term growth in response to Hoskinson’s claims. According to him, $XRP increased from about $0.0028 in 2014 to a peak of $3.64 in 2025, bringing in returns of roughly 129,900%.
I’ve seen critics argue that $XRP has shown no real appreciation. In reality, it rose from its 2014 bottom roughly $0.0028 to $3.64 at peak in 2025 delivering roughly 129,900% returns.
And from the $0.11 low of 2020 to the $3.64 high in 2025, that’s a return of roughly 33x in…
— Vandell | Black Swan Capitalist (@vandell33) April 19, 2026
Over a shorter timeframe, he also noted that $XRP rose from $0.11 in 2020 to $3.64 in 2025, giving a 33x return in five years. Aljarrah said this kind of performance is much higher than what top hedge funds usually deliver. Despite this, he suggested that $XRP could still see more growth in the future.
