The comments sparked a backlash from long-term holders.
Despite their caution, some analysts have outlined bullish scenarios.
Ripple Chief Technology Officer David Schwartz has expressed serious doubts about long-held expectations that the XRP token could eventually reach $50 to $100.
The comments sparked a backlash from long-term holders who claimed they undermined confidence in the asset, although the bullish forecasts continued to gain traction.
Schwartz made the remarks in a post on X, responding to speculation about whether XRP will reach $50-100 per token in the next few years.
“I don’t feel comfortable saying this,” Schwartz wrote. “While I think it’s unlikely, I think it’s unlikely that XRP will hit $0.25.”
He added that his own expectations about cryptocurrency prices have been proven wrong multiple times.
“I started selling XRP at $0.10 because it seemed crazy. I remember when Bitcoin hit $100 it seemed like an impossible dream,” he said.
The comments were widely circulated on social media, where XRP supporters have been circulating price targets of $10 and over $100 for years.
Some XRP holders responded angrily, saying Schwartz’s comments undermined morale and contradicted early beliefs in the token’s long-term design and potential value.
One X user questioned whether Ripple’s original vision for XRP has changed.
“This statement does not make me confident that XRP will reach a significant price,” the user wrote.
Another holder said the comments could prompt long-term investors to sell.
“Been holding it for a few years, got a lot of money… might sell now if we see $2 again,” the user said.
Some users expressed similar sentiments, saying they were reconsidering their stance after holding the coin for years.
Others, however, praised Schwartz’s honesty and supported his non-sensational stance.
One X user replied: “He can’t reveal any such information. Please, especially when global adoption is right before our eyes.”
In a follow-up post shortly after, Schwartz argued that the current price already reflects investors’ true belief in XRP’s future.
“If many rational people believed that XRP had a 10% chance of hitting $100 in a few years, they certainly wouldn’t be selling much today for much less than $10,” he wrote.
Traders fight back | Source: X
Investors with this belief will quickly buy up supply, driving up prices, Schwartz said.
“It’s currently trading well below $10, which shows that not many people actually think it has a 10% chance of hitting $100 in a few years and are confident enough to put their money where their mouth is,” he said.
Adding: “Therefore, anyone who holds a contrary view is not telling the truth.”
He added that in his view, cryptocurrency prices are “rational most of the time,” while major bull markets are often driven by “unpredictable external changes.”
Despite Schwartz’s caution, some market analysts still predict significant upside for XRP based on technical and historical patterns.
Cryptocurrency analyst Egrag Crypto said that XRP’s long-term price structure is consistent with a multi-channel logarithmic regression model.
According to analysts, there is an 80-90% chance of a price rise to $4.50, while a 60-75% chance of a price rise to $10 is 60-75%.
A cycle peak scenario near $27 has a 50-55% probability, while an extreme “black swan” outcome could push the price to $200, albeit with a lower estimated probability of 20-35%.
“This is not opium,” the bullish analyst wrote. “It’s geometry, symmetry and structure. Channels are not predictive. They guide probabilities.”
CCN analyst Victor Olanrewaju said that XRP remains range-bound in the short term.
Olanrewaju said XRP is consolidating above $1.90, with a descending channel limiting recovery attempts since surging earlier this year.
He wrote that as long as XRP remains above the $1.80 support area, downward pressure is likely to remain contained.
A breakout of the descending channel could push the price towards $2.09, with a highly bullish case targeting $2.28.
However, Olanrewaju said that if it fails to break higher, XRP may fall back to $1.78.
At the time of this report, XRP price was $1.74, down 8.78% from the past week.
Ripple’s chief technology officer claims it’s “unlikely” for XRP prices to reach $100 as disgruntled traders boycott.
