XRP is for payments, Bitcoin for ‘speculation,’ says former US Treasurer

After joining Ripple’s board of directors in May, Rosa Rios is bashing Bitcoin for being a supposed speculative tool.

Amid the ongoing legal battle between Ripple and United States’ securities regulators, a former U.S. Treasurer and Ripple board member has voiced support for XRP.

Former Treasurer Rosa Rios, who joined Ripple’s board of directors in May 2021, took to Twitter on Sunday to reiterate her confidence in XRP while criticizing other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC).

Rios argued that jurisdictions like China are now cracking down on Bitcoin, as cryptocurrencies like BTC allegedly provide nothing more than a tool for speculation. Tagging Bitcoin, Ripple and its payment ecosystem, RippleNet, the former U.S. official wrote:

“XRP’s primary purpose is facilitating cross border payments while other cryptos find their value in speculation. China’s latest move brings this point home.”

Rios served as the U.S. Treasurer from 2009 to 2016 under President Barack Obama, overseeing all currency and coin production activities with an annual budget of $5 billion.

“Blockchain and crypto will underpin our future global financial systems,” Rios declared on joining Ripple’s board, adding that the firm is “one of best examples of how to use cryptocurrency in a substantive and legitimate role to facilitate payments globally.”

Rios also expressed concerns over cryptocurrencies being a tool for criminal actors. “There’s still a lot of work to be done in terms of really knowing what’s behind the curtain, how blockchain really works, how unfortunately cryptos are used to fund the dark web and other illicit activities,” she said.

Related: Ripple is helping Bhutan pilot a CBDC

Released in 2012, Ripple is a distributed open-source protocol and remittance system created by U.S. company Ripple Labs. The company provides a number of cross-border payment solutions alongside being involved in central bank digital currency projects.

Earlier this year, Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen argued that Bitcoin would lose its leadership as the world’s most valued cryptocurrency if it doesn’t move away from its proof-of-work consensus mechanism.