Was Jed McCaleb’s Exit from Ripple a ‘Breakup’ or a Brilliant Strategy? Find Out!

Jed McCaleb’s departure from Ripple in 2014 has long been a topic of speculation in the cryptocurrency world. Many believed it was the end of his involvement with the company, but what if it wasn’t a breakup? What if Jed’s split from Ripple was actually a strategic move, part of a larger plan to create a parallel blockchain system?
Jed McCaleb, one of Ripple’s co-founders, played a pivotal role in designing XRP’s early framework. He contributed to building XRP’s architecture and was instrumental in Ripple’s initial success. However, after some disagreements, Jed McCaleb decided to leave Ripple in 2014 and promptly launched Stellar (XLM).
Despite popular belief, Jed McCaleb’s departure from Ripple may not have been a simple breakup. The timing of his exit suggests that it was a calculated move, occurring just as Ripple was gaining traction in the world of global finance and payment systems.
In fact, Jed’s departure aligned perfectly with Ripple’s expansion into institutional markets, the emergence of the ISO 20022 standard, and discussions by prominent financial entities like the IMF, the BIS, and the WEF regarding the future of payments. This indicates that Jed’s departure was not an abandonment but rather a strategic deployment to kickstart the second phase of a global payment solution.
Furthermore, XRP and XLM, the cryptocurrencies associated with Ripple and Stellar, respectively, were never meant to be competitors. Instead, they were designed to complement each other in a larger scheme. XRP focuses on enhancing liquidity, facilitating cross-border payments, and supporting central bank digital currencies within the financial industry, while Stellar aims to bring blockchain technology to underserved communities, humanitarian efforts, and retail stablecoin transactions.
Both Ripple and Stellar have forged strategic partnerships that align with their respective missions. Ripple has teamed up with major financial institutions like Bank of America and SBI to bolster international banking systems, while Stellar has collaborated with organizations such as the United Nations for blockchain-based aid initiatives and Franklin Templeton for asset tokenization.
In essence, Jed McCaleb’s departure from Ripple was not a random event but rather a well-thought-out move. While Ripple concentrated on the institutional side of the cryptocurrency market, McCaleb’s Stellar project set out to democratize blockchain technology and empower individuals worldwide. The split between Ripple and Stellar may not have been a breakup after all but rather a strategic divergence to cover different aspects of the evolving cryptocurrency landscape.