Ripple, the company behind XRP, was originally called OpenCoin (founded in 2012) and was later renamed Ripple Labs. However, the XRP Ledger technology that powers the XRP cryptocurrency was created even earlier, in 2004. It was initially developed as a decentralized system for financial transactions, but had nothing to do with cryptocurrencies.
One of the key developers of the XRP Ledger, David Schwartz, later became the chief technology officer of Ripple. Interestingly, he is also the author of cryptographic algorithms that are used in the security systems of Apple and Microsoft.
In addition, XRP is often called the “cryptocurrency for banks”, as Ripple actively cooperates with financial institutions around the world, offering solutions for instant and cheap international payments. However, this also causes controversy, as many in the crypto community believe that XRP is too centralized, which contradicts the original philosophy of decentralization of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.