While Bitcoin and Ethereum continue to enjoy most of the limelight, there are other promising cryptocurrencies out there.
Ripple is a venture-backed startup that provides global financial settlement solutions that reduce the total cost of settlement by enabling banks to transact directly and instantly, while ensuring certainty. It aims to “enable the world to exchange value like it already exchanges information – giving rise to an Internet of Value (IoV).”
XRP, its digital currency, is a fast, scalable digital asset, enabling real-time global payments anywhere in the world. “Built for enterprise use, XRP offers banks and payment providers a reliable, on demand option to source liquidity for cross-border payments,” says the firm.
Ripple’s digital asset has witnessed tremendous growth during Q12017 with market participants purchasing $6.7MM directly from Ripple’s registered and licensed money service business (MSB), as per its quarterly report.
XRP is currently the third largest cryptocurrency in terms of market capitalization; with almost $10 billion in market capitalization, it accounts for roughly around 9% of the cryptocurrency market. Its price has gone up from $0.006684 in the beginning of 2017 to $0.258368, an increase of over 38x.
Source: Highcharts.com
Ripple is partnering with banks and financial institutions to improvise cross-border payment solutions. It is a part of Federal Reserve’s Faster Payments Task Force Steering Committee and co-chairs the W3C’s Web Payments Working Group. Fidor Bank AG was the first bank to integrate the Ripple protocol for real-time global settlement in 2014. Today, some of the most prominent global banks including Standard Chartered, National Australia Bank (NAB), MUFG, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Santander, Royal Bank of Canada and CIBC are a part of its growing network.
Should You Buy?
Ripple has a long way to go, but considering its pace of expansion, one should not shudder at the prospect of buying XRP. Its value is increasing considerably as more and more financial institutions are adopting it or are in the process of adopting it as a payments gateway for transfers and investments. Ripple is also making it to cryptocurrency fund portfolios, which will further strengthen its position.
A demonstrated commitment to technology, innovation, and the presence of a global network have allowed Ripple to gain the confidence of market leaders in the financial world. Cryptocurrencies are the future of the financial world and Ripple can play a very important role.
In the quickly changing world of cryptocurrencies, Ripple has already made a name for itself. What is interesting about Ripple, though, and what leads some financial institutions and analysts to predict a strong future for this network, is the fact that Ripple is designed to increase global liquidity of money by allowing transfers around the world to take place at record speeds and for very little in terms of fees. Perhaps the innovative technology behind these achievements is what has prompted Ripple to gain 4300% in value in year to date as of December 12, 2017. So how does one go about buying Ripple, then? Like other cryptocurrencies, Ripple is available on several different exchanges. According to the Ripple website, here is how to go about purchasing XRP, Ripple’s cryptocurrency token, through some of those exchanges.
How to Buy on Bitstamp
Bitstamp provides XRP/EUR, XRP/USD, and XRP/BTC trading pairs. To buy XRP on this exchange, you’ll first need to create and verify an account with Bitstamp. Visit the Bitstamp website to open an account, and follow instructions to confirm your registered email address. Once the account is active, log in and follow further instructions to secure and verify the account. Next, you’ll need to deposit funds within the main page of the account, using the “Deposit” link. Once the funds have been credited to your Bitstamp account, you’ll get a notification from the exchange. You can then purchase XRP on Bitstamp by selecting the correct market for your currency and completing an order in the main account.
How to Buy on Kraken
Kraken is another cryptocurrency exchange that you can use to buy XRP. In order to do so, visit the Kraken page to sign up for an account. Follow verification instructions and log in. Next, deposit funds into your account. In order to buy XRP on Kraken, you have to first buy XBT. Place an order to buy XBT, and then place another order using the XRP/XBT currency pair. This will allow you to complete your transaction for XRP.
How to Buy on GateHub
As with the other exchanges on this list, to buy XRP with GateHub you’ll first need to visit the GateHub website and sign up for an account. Store your recovery key and verify your account, confirming via email as instructed. Next, sign in and be prepared to verify your identity before being able to conduct transactions. You’ll then need to connect a gateway in order to be able to deposit funds. Once you’ve deposited funds, you’ll be able to buy XRP on the “Exchange” page.
There are many other exchanges which also provide access to XRP as well. If you use CoinOne, Bitso, Coincheck, Korbit, Bitbank, Qryptos, BTCXIndia, or Bitsane, you are also in luck.
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