A post from Ripple’s former Chief Technology Officer is circulating on social media, and it contains a detail that has received little attention until now. Responding to a question about risk, he clarified that the 26 million XRP he holds was not a gift. He traded Bitcoin for it. “That’s 26 million XRP that I traded bitcoin for,” he wrote. That statement entirely reframes the nature of his position. This was not compensation from Ripple. He previously revealed that he bought XRP at $0.006 . His statement shows it was a deliberate trade, not an allocation from Ripple like its other executives received. That's 26 million XRP that I traded bitcoin for. But once XRP hit 10 cents, I had millions of dollars at risk. I very much did not like that at the time. — David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) May 4, 2026 David Schwartz’s Risk Aversion Earlier in the same thread, the former CTO discussed his general approach to risk. He stated that he has been working to reduce his crypto exposure, moving most of his assets away from crypto. He cited Ripple stock as already providing enough risk in his view, describing everything else as what “should be fairly conservative.” He also addressed his XRP holdings, stating that he would have owned more XRP and likely more crypto overall if he did not already have so much exposure through his Ripple equity. His position is not one of disinterest in XRP, but shows a portfolio management decision made against a backdrop of significant concentrated risk. However, some interpreted his comments as not having faith in XRP. Schwartz previously revealed that he sold XRP at $0.1 , not believing it could rise to $0.25. Schwartz stated that once XRP reached $0.1, he had millions of dollars at risk and was clear that he did not enjoy that exposure. A Pattern of Underestimating Upside Potential The thread began with a reference to a well-known moment in crypto history. A community member highlighted the story of Schwartz selling ETH for $1.05 . He responded, saying if he had believed there was a 1% chance of ETH reaching $2,368, he would not have sold at that price. He acknowledged uncertainty about whether the odds of that outcome were ever above 1% at the time. This interaction also ties into Schwartz’s recent comments. He recently explained that if major financial players believed there was a 1% chance that XRP could hit $10,000 in 10 years, they would bid its price up to $20 now . Similarly, he did not believe ETH could reach current levels, and he sold his tokens early. Disclaimer : This content is meant to inform and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author’s personal opinions and do not represent Times Tabloid’s opinion. Readers are advised to conduct thorough research before making any investment decisions. Any action taken by the reader is strictly at their own risk. Times Tabloid is not responsible for any financial losses. Follow us on X , Facebook , Telegram , and Google News The post Ex-Ripple CTO: Once XRP Hit 10 Cents, I Had Millions of Dollars At Risk appeared first on Times Tabloid .