David Schwartz, Ripple’s former CTO and now CTO Emeritus, recently addressed questions surrounding the eventual depletion of Ripple’s $XRP escrow holdings.
At present, Ripple controls approximately 32.9 billion $XRP in escrow accounts, according to on-chain data provided by XRPScan. With the existing arrangement, the system unlocks 1 billion $XRP every month.
However, Ripple does not typically utilize the entire amount. Instead, it generally places between 700 million and 800 million $XRP back into escrow and retains only about 200 million to 300 million $XRP for use.
Based on this pattern, the escrow balance could theoretically last for another 9.8 years before becoming exhausted. If Ripple maintained the same approach without any changes, the escrow supply could run out sometime between 2035 and 2036.
$XRP Escrow Release Compared to Bitcoin Mining
However, future adjustments to Ripple’s strategy could change this timeline. Amid this uncertainty, Kobe, an $XRP community member, sought clarification from Schwartz.
The community member noted that Ripple’s escrow eventually reaching zero could resemble the moment when Bitcoin miners produce the final $BTC. Kobe suggested that both situations involve the end of a long-term distribution process.
He also noted that Ripple’s escrow could reach that point much sooner than Bitcoin’s mining schedule. Based on his calculations, he asked whether Ripple’s escrow could effectively run out around the year 2035.
David Schwartz Explains Why the Timeline Remains Uncertain
In response, Schwartz explained that it is difficult to predict exactly when Ripple’s escrow could be depleted. He said any estimate depends on assumptions about how much $XRP Ripple decides to use and how much of each monthly release the company places back into future escrow accounts.
It’s hard to predict because you have to make assumptions about how much $XRP Ripple uses and how much gets put back into subsequent escrow months. Also, $BTC‘s rewards trickle down over time so even though they won’t go to zero for a very long time, they may become economically…
— David ‘JoelKatz’ Schwartz (@JoelKatz) June 6, 2026
The former Ripple CTO noted that because those factors can change over time, no one can confidently determine an exact date. Specifically, Ripple’s business needs, market conditions, and $XRP usage could all affect how quickly the escrow balance decreases.
He also pointed out that Bitcoin operates under a different model. Bitcoin mining rewards gradually decrease over time instead of ending suddenly. As a result, while Bitcoin’s rewards will not disappear completely for many years, they could become less important from an economic standpoint much earlier.
Major Differences Between Bitcoin and $XRP
Schwartz then explained that Bitcoin and $XRP face different issues when it comes to their token distribution systems. In Bitcoin’s case, block rewards help encourage miners to secure the network whenever transaction fees alone are not enough.
He noted that greater mining participation generally leads to a more secure blockchain. If block rewards become too small, some miners may decide that mining is no longer worth the energy costs involved. They may choose to wait until transaction activity increases and fees rise enough to make mining profitable again.
According to Schwartz, this situation could lead to periods of uneven or “bursty” mining activity. He added that Bitcoin could eventually adopt changes to address such an outcome. Another possibility is that transaction fees could rise enough to continue supporting miners even as block rewards decline.
For $XRP, the situation is different because Ripple’s escrow releases provide the company with $XRP that it can use. Schwartz said those monthly unlocks give Ripple access to tokens that support its activities.
While Ripple could continue carrying out many $XRP-related initiatives even without escrow releases, he believes some things would likely change once the escrow system eventually comes to an end.
Ripple would still be able to play a role in the $XRP ecosystem, but its operations could look different after it no longer receives $XRP through monthly escrow unlocks.
