A new discussion is growing on X around an old idea. Some users are pointing out that the XRP Ledger (XRPL) has supported tokenized gold for years. The surprising part is not the technology itself, but the fact that very few people noticed it at the time.
This has started a broader debate about why many XRPL developments often stay under the radar.
One crypto user described the XRPL as having a strange history. According to the comment, the network is often too early for people to understand its value, and at other times too late to catch up once the market moves on.
That idea quickly spread across the XRP community, especially as interest in tokenized real-world assets is rising again among banks and large institutions.
XRP lawyer Bill Morgan shared an important reason behind the lack of attention.
He explained that Ripple avoided promoting XRP and the XRPL for many years because of legal risk. The company feared it could be accused of selling an unregistered security.
This concern was strongest between 2018 and 2020, and Ripple had already been cautious before that. Despite this, Ripple was eventually sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
During the lawsuit, Ripple could barely talk about XRP in public. At the same time, other crypto projects continued to be promoted freely.
While Ripple stayed quiet, Bitcoin and Ethereum faced fewer public restrictions. Ethereum also benefited from comments made by former SEC official Bill Hinman, which many in the industry saw as helpful clarity.
Even today, Ripple’s approach remains careful. Instead of heavy marketing, it focuses on infrastructure, partnerships, acquisitions, and products like RLUSD.
This is very different from figures like Michael Saylor, who constantly and openly promote Bitcoin.
Macro strategist Versan Aljarrah explained it in very simple terms. Gold is hard to move. You cannot easily send physical gold across borders, and it usually needs banks or middlemen. Because of this, gold is considered illiquid.
Tokenized gold tries to fix that problem by turning real gold into a digital token. To move tokenized gold around the world, a bridge currency is needed. This is where XRP comes in. When someone sends tokenized gold internationally, XRP acts as the connector. It converts the value quickly into any local currency, stablecoin, or digital asset. The transfer happens in seconds, while the gold remains fully backed.
Related: XRP’s Bounce Meets Reality as Bitcoin Pressure Keeps Altcoins in Check
