He owned Bitcoin and Ethereum, but this coin made him rich: Ripple ex-CTO’s crypto strategy decoded

Not Bitcoin or Ethereum, Ripple ex-CTO David Schwartz revealed that the cryptocurrency that made him create a humongous amount of personal wealth is XRP.

Schwartz helped design the XRP Ledger before retiring from the chief technology officer role earlier this year.

Here's a look at how XRP managed to outperform Bitcoin and Ethereum in his portfolio:

What did he do right?

Recently, he posted on X that he once held 26 million XRP. He also owned roughly 1,000 Bitcoin (BTC) and 40,000 Ethereum (ETH) tokens.

As a co-founder of Ripple, Schwartz’s early investment in XRP turned out to be more profitable than his investments in Bitcoin and Ethereum. XRP reached a record high of $3.65 in July 2025 and now trades near $1.46, ranking as the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market value.

The steady rise in XRP’s price helped Schwartz make millions of dollars. Even though he has sold a significant part of his holdings over the years, he still retains a large stake in the token.

What went wrong?

However, he has one regret!

Schwartz admitted that he sold his Ethereum holdings at roughly $1.05 per token, which was for too little. ETH has since traded thousands of dollars above that level.

It is currently trading at $2,297.

His investment in Bitcoin followed a similar trend. He reduced his holdings from about 1,000 Bitcoins to less than one coin, long before Bitcoin’s price crossed the six-figure mark.

What it tells about his investing behaviour?

Even though a crypto bet turned out to be magic for him, he said he cut each crypto position sharply over the years.

The pattern reflects the same instinct – Schwartz has previously described himself as risk-averse, preferring to lock in gains rather than wait for larger future moves. And he said that he still struggles to emotionally embrace risk.

Asked what he would tell a younger version of himself, Schwartz said he would advise taking more risk in crypto. However, he conceded that his younger self likely would have ignored the guidance anyway, as reported by Be(in)Crypto.

His current portfolio reflects that caution. Schwartz has said his remaining exposure sits almost entirely in XRP and Ripple equity. The company has an estimated private valuation of $40 billion.

How are cryptocurrencies trading since Iran war?

Bitcoin rose to its highest level since early February last month after a flurry of comments from the US and Iran sparked optimism that the conflict in the Middle East may be heading toward a resolution.

The original cryptocurrency broke through the higher bound of the narrow range it's been trading in since the war broke out in late February, topping $78,000 for the first time since 3 February. Bitcoin rose as much as 4.1% to $78,343, before paring the increase.

Other digital assets also pushed higher, with Either strengthening 3.3% and XRP increasing 2.4% as part of a broader risk-on rally. Equities climbed after Iran announced that the Strait of Hormuz is now “completely open” for commercial traffic, prompting traders to take on more risk. Oil and the dollar tumbled.