What is XRP, specifically focusing on its intended use case and technical design? Who created XRP, and what is the relationship between XRP, Ripple Labs, and the XRP Ledger? How decentralized is the XRP Ledger compared to other major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, and what are the arguments for and against considering it sufficiently decentralized? Finally, what are the major criticisms and controversies surrounding XRP and Ripple Labs?

Answer

XRP is a cryptocurrency used within the XRP Ledger, a decentralized cryptographic ledger. It was created by Jed McCaleb, Arthur Britto, and David Schwartz. They later founded the company Ripple Labs (originally known as NewCoin and later OpenCoin), which is closely associated with XRP, although Ripple emphasizes that XRP is independent of the company.