Versan Aljarra of Black Swan Capitalist makes a broader case for XRP than the usual market cycle prediction. In X’s post on how XRP will become a global reserve asset, he argues that XRP’s long-term role is not limited to payments or liquidity, but can become a neutral settlement layer within a global digital financial system.
Aljarra’s central point is that the XRP debate is trapped in the wrong framework. “The conversation around XRP is usually shrouded in speculation and price predictions,” he said. “But underneath all the noise, there is a more interesting story that connects regulation, sovereign integration and institutional recognition at the highest levels of global finance. The true potential of XRP is not only as a payment token or monetary asset. It is a fundamental layer in the digital order, financial interoperability, where all issues, liquidity and financial interoperability are.”
How XRP is becoming a global reserve asset
This thesis rests on three pillars. “In order to understand how XRP becomes a global reserve asset, there are several pillars that need to be aligned, acceptance of sovereignty, regulatory clarity and institutional recognition, which ultimately comes from the IMF,” wrote Aljarra. According to him, this process does not start with market incentives, but with the use of the nation state.
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He emphasizes that reserve assets derive their legitimacy from official acceptance, not price action. “Before any asset can become a global reserve tool, it first needs sovereign legitimacy,” he wrote. “Reserve assets, whether gold, US dollars, or Electronic Special Drawing Rights (ESDRs), derive their credibility not from market speculation, but from their adoption and use by nation states.”
From there, Aljarra moves on to how XRP can fit into cross-border finance, especially for countries that want to reduce the dependence of their settlement systems on the dollar. “Emerging markets are all exploring blockchain solutions to improve liquidity, reduce costs and stabilize their currencies,” he wrote. “For countries with unstable or dollar-dependent economies like the BRICS, XRP’s design presents a unique advantage as a neutral settlement currency, meaning it can bridge local currencies without forcing countries into a geopolitical military system.”
This leads to one of the strongest claims in the thread. “So it’s not a matter of ‘if’ but ‘when’ nations will start using XRP to solve monetary inefficiencies,” Aljarra said. “Countries around the world have already integrated XRP into their payment rails and are already using it for cross-border settlements. This lays the groundwork for global institutional recognition.”
The next stage, in his opinion, is legal clarity. Aljarra points to the CLARITY Act as a turning point, as it could make XRP more accessible to institutions and governments if Ripple’s influence on supply is reduced enough.
“By reducing its holdings, Ripple will effectively decentralize its influence over XRP, making it legally neutral, non-public and globally accessible, with no requirement for assets to achieve reserve status and settlements,” he wrote. “Once Ripple shares meet the Clarity Act’s eligibility criteria, institutional adoption will accelerate and sovereign nations will be able to own and deal with XRP without triggering securities laws.”
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Only after fulfilling these two conditions will Aljarra bring to the IMF. He claims that in a tokenized financial system, XRP could be like a programmable resource settlement tool. “When consolidated as a reserve asset, the valuation of XRP is determined by the settlement profit, the depth of liquidity and the outcome of transactions in the network of independent participants and multilateral institutions, such as BRICS,” he said.
“This is perhaps the most important part, as price discovery moves from noise to institutional liquidity corridors, where value reflects the function of assets in global settlement operations. Essentially, the price of XRP is measured by its value.”
Aljarrah closes with the XRP framework less as a speculative crypto asset and more as an infrastructure. “It’s not just about XRP, it’s about the transition from a centralized dollar-dominated financial order to a multipolar and interoperable system that uses digital assets, infrastructure and neutral settlement technologies.”
For readers following the XRP story, the message is clear: this is not a business thesis, but a long-term debate about the state of the reserve, the money pipeline, and the future architecture of global liquidity.
At press time, XRP was trading at $1.3576.
Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
