Ripple Team Predicting Real-World Crypto Utility Growth for 2023

San Francisco-based fintech firm Ripple is confident that crypto and XRP adoption will continue to grow in 2023.

On Jan. 10, Ripple published a company blog highlighting its industry insights for the coming year. As the dust settles from last year’s contagions, it predicts that there will be a focus on real-world crypto utility this year.

Ripple SVP of Engineering Devraj Varadhan predicted a general shift in the marketplace. Things will move from highly speculative companies to companies that harness crypto solutions to solve real-world problems.

“From Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) to Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) to sustainability, most of the expectations for crypto this coming year involve its application for real-world utility.”

Ripple Confident For 2023

The focus on real-world applications will help propel the new era of CBDCs, said Sendi Young, Managing Director of Europe.

More CBDC pilot programs around the world are expected this year. Furthermore, they will have an “emphasis on interoperable CBDC solutions that enhance cross-border payments,” according to James Wallis, VP of Central Bank Engagements.

According to the Atlantic Council, there are currently 17 countries engaging in a CBDC pilot, and 11 have already launched them.

Crypto utility will also extend to non-fungible tokens, according to the firm.

“While the first wave of NFTs centered around digital art and collectibles, there is already a nascent second wave exploring real-world use cases such as real estate and carbon markets.”

Additionally, BeInCrypto reported that real-world asset (RWA) tokenization is set to surge in 2023.

Young also said that institutions would accelerate the long-term adoption of crypto solutions due to the potential gains in efficiency, transparency, and speed.

“Banks and other large financial institutions will invest in new technologies with an expectation of realizing the benefits not in days and weeks, but in years, so we see the embrace of digital assets and blockchain continuing throughout 2023 and beyond,”

Furthermore, Ripple’s VP of Impact, Ken Weber, predicted that large non-governmental organizations (NGOs) would start integrating crypto to better serve the financially vulnerable.

He added that carbon markets would also likely emerge as a clear use case for blockchain and crypto. 

The Ripple team concluded that the 2022 crypto winter would give way to a utility-focused crypto spring in 2023.

XRP Price Outlook

Ripple’s native XRP asset has struggled to gain momentum recently despite gains for those around it.

However, the cross-border payments coin has spiked in the last hour, adding 4.4% on the day. As a result, XRP was trading at $0.363 at the time of press.

XRP has failed to gain much over the past month, having dropped 5%. Furthermore, it is still down a painful 89% from its $3.40 all-time high five years ago this month.