The XRP Ledger (XRPL) operates as a fundamentally decentralized blockchain, with its governance and transaction processing distributed across a large and diverse set of network participants. Ripple, a prominent entity associated with the ledger, currently operates only one of the 186 active validators maintained by independent participants globally, representing approximately 1% of the total validator count.
Crucially, no single entity, including Ripple, controls the XRPL network. While Ripple provides infrastructure updates and contributes to the ecosystem, its influence does not extend to dictating network operations or protocol changes. For any core alteration to transaction processing rules to be implemented, approval from at least 80% of the independent validators operating the ledger is strictly required.
Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer has publicly reinforced this point, stating clearly that Ripple does not control the XRP Ledger despite being a significant contributor. This robust decentralization architecture, characterized by its widely distributed validators and high consensus threshold, is considered vital for maintaining the XRPL’s overall integrity and establishing its trustworthiness within the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem.