XRP News : Ripple CTO Reveals Secrets Behind XRPL’s Governance Voting System

The crypto world has been surrounded by controversy and debate for a long time now. The most recent topic that has captured everyone’s attention is the decentralization of the XRP Ledger (XRPL).

Recently, David Schwartz, the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Ripple, shared some fascinating insights into this issue that are sure to pique your interest. Schwartz delved into the governance voting system on the XRPL, revealing how nodes can accept or reject amendments proposed by validators.

XRPL as a Permissioned Network

This comes in response to concerns raised by a former Ripple director that Ripple could burn all the escrowed XRP tokens, potentially rendering the XRPL a permissioned network. 

David Schwartz Sheds Light on XRPL’s Governance Voting System

Ripple’s CTO, David Schwartz, has shed light on the governance voting system of the XRP Ledger (XRPL). Schwartz revealed that nodes on the XRPL have the authority to approve or deny amendments that validators vote on, with a particular focus on Ripple’s XRP holdings. Schwartz, one of the early developers behind the XRPL, shared this information to counter allegations of inherent centralization within the XRPL.

Related: Ripple Might Burn Its XRP Holdings – Here’s Why – Coinpedia Fintech News

Hamilton’s Disclosure

A member of the XRP community asserted that if validators had control over Ripple’s XRP in escrow, it would make the XRPL a permissioned network. The remark referred to a recent disclosure by Matt Hamilton, a former Ripple director, stating that Ripple could destroy all escrowed XRP tokens.

The Power of Validators

Hamilton’s comments reignited a conversation previously sparked by Schwartz in December 2020. Schwartz revealed that around 80% of validators on the XRPL could vote to burn Ripple’s escrowed XRP, prompting the community member to claim that this would centralize the XRPL.

Also Read: XRP Price Prediction 2023: Expert Predicts Potential High & Low Levels – Coinpedia Fintech News

Hamilton countered the community member’s assertions and affirmed that validators could vote to change the supply of XRP. He further emphasized that this practice is typical of all decentralized and permissionless systems. Schwartz provided further clarification by explaining that if validators voted on an amendment, it would be reflected in the code. Subsequently, nodes could decide whether to run the updated code or not, meaning they could either approve or decline the amendment.

Preservation of Node Autonomy in XRPL

In addressing concerns over validator power, David Schwartz, Ripple’s CTO, emphasized the inability of validators to compel node operators to adopt code amendments. Schwartz clarified that the enforcement of rules is dependent on the code chosen by each individual node. By highlighting that disagreements with validators merely count towards the 80% threshold, Schwartz affirmed the preservation of node autonomy within the XRP Ledger (XRPL).