Ripple Executive Suggests XRP Must Adopt a Solana-Like Strategy to Stay Competitive

Key takeaways:

• Luke Judges asserts that technical expertise alone does not ensure long-term competitiveness, implying that XRP could gain from Solana’s practicality and execution speed.

• Judges contends that Solana’s market success stems from effective engineering and a swift go-to-market strategy, rather than relying solely on protocol design.

• David Schwartz holds an opposing view, claiming that the stability and reliability of XRPL outweigh the benefits of pursuing high-throughput chains.

• Judges emphasizes the importance of developer onboarding, tooling, and validator incentives in maintaining growth and mitigating centralization risks.

Luke Judges, global partner success lead and director of Ripple, shared insights regarding the evolving XRP Ledger ecosystem and its competitive environment, drawing a clear parallel to the operational achievements of the competing layer-1 network Solana. Referencing his previous experience in managing a significant validator in the Solana network, Judges indicated that technical excellence is insufficient for ensuring a network’s long-term significance.

This article delves into Ripple executives’ perspectives on operational lessons, emphasizing the technical advancements in the XRP Ledger (XRPL) and the strategic demands for layer-1 competitiveness.

Operational lessons from Solana’s playbook

Judges’ viewpoint is distinctive, shaped by his experiences in establishing two startups and operating a Solana validator that handled over $30 million in staked tokens throughout a complete market cycle. He revealed this information on Nov. 30, 2025, on X, noting his observations during the network’s major price peak and its subsequent decline and recovery.

This practical exposure led Judges to deduce that the triumph of layer-1 networks during competitive cycles is frequently influenced by elements beyond core technology. He specifically recognized Solana for its “pragmatism and speed,” which he considers essential for attracting developer interest and fostering adoption.

The central premise is that execution speed and a pragmatic approach to engineering and market entry can surpass theoretical leadership in the race for ecosystem development.

However, Judges argues that other chains should learn from Solana’s network operations, suggesting there is “no point avoiding reality by pretending you’re the sole chain available.” For the XRPL, these insights underline possible blind spots, indicating that technical achievements must be paired with a proactive go-to-market (GTM) strategy to genuinely translate into a competitive advantage.

Technical developments in the XRP Ledger

The call for strategic advancement arises as the XRPL actively seeks substantial technical growth, including launching XRP Ledger Smart Contracts on AlphaNet. Traditionally optimized for rapid, low-cost cross-border transactions through its federated consensus mechanism, the XRPL is now concentrating on enhancing its programmability and utility in the decentralized finance (DeFi) arena.

In direct contrast to Judges’ perspective, David Schwartz, Ripple’s chief technology officer and the original designer of the XRP Ledger, highlighted that XRP’s design philosophy emphasizes reliability, efficiency, and institutional-grade performance. He contended that this places the network inherently above high-throughput chains like Solana without needing to modify its core strategy.

Schwartz criticizes blockchains like Solana for prioritizing sheer speed at the cost of stability, citing its record of network outages as proof that this method is unsuitable for real-world financial applications.

For Schwartz, the XRPL’s consensus mechanism ensures consistent transaction finality and negligible fees, providing enhanced uptime and predictability. He believes this offers a critical competitive advantage that should be emphasized over mimicking the ecosystem structure that Judges lauds for its “pragmatism and speed.”

Developer and ecosystem considerations

A vital aspect of Judges’ evaluation revolves around developer experience and ecosystem support. Providing effective developer tools, clear documentation, and structured onboarding procedures can motivate developers to launch applications and engage with the network.

Judges’ insights underscore fundamental challenges in sustaining a resilient layer-1 network, particularly the necessity for strong and sustainable validator economics. While recognizing Solana’s success in attracting developers, he also remarked that the network is confronting the issue of a rapidly declining “validator count,” raising long-term concerns regarding decentralization and the sustainability of its incentive model.

For the XRPL, this acts as a proactive warning against establishing incentive frameworks that could create similar concentration risks, especially as the network investigates native staking concepts.

The discourse on validator economics illustrates the differing design philosophies between the two networks. The XRPL’s consensus is valued for its proven stability, fast transaction finality, and institutional-grade dependability. Its challenge lies in creating new staking mechanisms that enhance utility without compromising its fundamental value proposition of predictable reliability, contrasting with the volatility observed in certain high-throughput chains.

Did you know? In his X post, Judges observes that the Ethereum Foundation is becoming “much more focused in their GTM,” referencing its transition toward layer-2 solutions, or rollups. This move directly addressed user complaints about high fees and slow speeds on the main chain, problems that Solana was effectively leveraging to attract users.

Market context and strategic execution

Judges’ overarching message should not be seen as an existential threat to the XRPL, but rather as a constructive call for strategic adaptation. It reflects a high-level acknowledgment that the competitive landscape favors execution over theoretical technological superiority.

In practical terms, Judges asserts that the XRPL’s strategic emphasis should focus on three main areas:

• Enhancing the developer experience by simplifying and expediting the process for programmers to build on the XRPL, taking cues from Solana’s emphasis on practical, user-friendly tools.

• Refining the market strategy to swiftly convert new technical developments such as smart contracts into clear, unique, and attractive benefits for partners and users.

• Utilizing reliability to drive enterprise adoption, which is the XRPL’s primary strength, while incorporating the operational speed and flexibility demonstrated in rival networks.

Judges’ insights can be seen as a reminder that capturing the next stage of blockchain adoption requires strategic adjustments to ensure the XRPL’s execution aligns with its technical innovations and established leadership in cross-border financial applications.