When Satoshi Nakamoto mined the first Bitcoin block on Jan. 3, 2009, it was widely accepted as the first time a viable cryptocurrency had been created. Since then, there have been countless cryptocurrencies created, including XRP (XRP 3.41%), which was first launched in June 2012 and began trading on exchanges in August 2013.
Like virtually all cryptocurrencies, XRP has experienced extreme volatility since it began trading. Five years ago (using Sept. 10, 2020, as the starting date), XRP's price was $0.2435. Had you invested $10,000 in the coin at that time, your investment would be worth around $121,971 today at its price of $2.97 at the time of this writing.
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Sending money from country to country is expensive if you go the traditional route because it typically has to go through several intermediaries. In some cases, fees could range between 5% to 7% of the total amount sent, meaning you could pay anywhere between $50 and $70 in fees for every $1,000 sent. That's a pretty sizable amount and adds up over time for people who routinely make these transactions.
XRP's main purpose at the moment is to make cross-border payments cheaper, faster, and more efficient. By acting as the neutral asset between two currencies (like the U.S. dollar and Brazilian real, for example), XRP can remove the intermediaries and complete these transactions in seconds, for a fraction of a cent.
Many cryptocurrencies appear to be no more than coins designed for a pump-and-dump scam to get their creators and early insiders rich. However, XRP has one of the best real-world use cases that we've seen from a cryptocurrency.
