Ripple Collaborates with Mastercard on Blockchain Innovation

Ripple became known through XRP, but the altcoin has been losing value noticeably since last summer. Ripple news hasn’t changed this, despite success in Australia, with Mastercard, and in the company’s valuation.

Ripple is having a busy week, with three positive news items being reported. However, investors have little to celebrate, as the XRP cryptocurrency is 62 percent below its record highs from July 2025, and the price trend is downward. While each of Ripple’s success stories is interesting in its own right, they have sorely failed to provide any significant impetus for XRP.

Ripple is among the more than 85 partners that Mastercard has secured for a new “crypto program.” The credit card giant has also brought other major players like Binance, Circle (USDC), and PayPal into its initiative. The goal, according to Mastercard ‘s press release, is to jointly develop new projects, improve crypto credit cards, and efficiently integrate blockchain solutions into everyday life – but XRP is not mentioned by Ripple either.

Ripple has allocated $750 million to buy back company shares, Bloomberg reports

This is particularly interesting because Ripple was valued at $40 billion in a funding round just over four months ago. Now, Ripple is valuing its buyback program at $50 billion; a 25% increase in less than six months is a significant statement. XRP plays only a minor role in this scenario, as the altcoin does not offer investors direct ownership in Ripple.

Last year, Ripple completed two major acquisitions: $1.25 billion for prime broker Hidden Road and $1 billion for financial administrator GTreasury. Now, Ripple’s acquisition spree has continued in Australia with the purchase of BC Payments, according to a press release.

The acquisition is intended to provide the crypto company with bank-like licenses in Australia , thereby boosting its business in the Pacific region. While this aligns with Ripple’s transformation into a financial services provider, XRP is relegated to a footnote.

Conclusion: XRP sometimes seems to be a “burden” for Ripple

When the company redefined its goals in the summer of 2024, positioning itself as a financial services provider, Donald Trump was still campaigning for re-election and Joe Biden was US president. XRP was languishing in a prolonged slump due to a long-running legal battle with the US Securities and Exchange Commission and played virtually no role in North America.

Ripple later benefited from the change of power in the White House and a spectacular XRP comeback thanks to the new US crypto policy – ​​but internally, even some within the company had likely already written off their altcoin. In Ripple’s external communications, its own, but relatively new, stablecoin RLUSD has long since overtaken the venerable XRP.

Whilethe crypto company still holds around 40 percent of all XRP in reserve, this “legacy” could become a problem in the event of a company IPO . As an investor, one should no longer equate XRP with Ripple; these developments make that clear.

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(Featured image by AKuptsova via Pixabay)

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