Tokenization ‘Overhyped’- Bitcoin Expert Calls ETH And XRP Thesis Flawed as XRP Price Slides

Bitcoin expert Pierre Rochard has dismissed the growing hype around tokenization as a long-term driver for XRP’s value. These comments coincide with the XRP price downturn, dropping by 6% in 24 hours.

Pierre Rochard Questions Tokenization Value for XRP

In a series of posts on X, Pierre Rochard claimed the investment thesis behind Ethereum and XRP rests on the assumption that securities tokenization will take place on their blockchains. According to him, this model hinges on fees being burned to reward token holders, an idea he dismissed as impractical.

Rochard pointed to the dominance of the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC). This is a cooperative that already clears and settles securities efficiently. 

“First, the incumbent, the DTCC, is a coop owned by its users, so the sales pitch of “instead of using fees to pay for operations, you should burn the fees to pump ETH or XRP and you’ll still have to pay for operations” is a complete non-starter…Those venues work great and already have low fees,” he argued. 

He further noted that crypto wallets may only attract users excluded from traditional finance, which risks pushing token-based fees onto the least wealthy participants.

The Bitcoin expert went further, saying that even if tokenization adoption grows, it would not translate into meaningful demand for XRP itself. 

“Increasing the utility of security tokens may marginally increase the demand for holding security tokens,” he said, “but it has zero effect on demand for holding ETH or XRP.” 

He stressed that the infinite competition of blockchain platforms undercuts any perceived value accrual. This is where open-source code keeps fees driven down.

Notably, Rochard had also labeled XRP a “retail token” lacking institutional credibility. He warned that utility alone cannot sustain long-term price appreciation. He questioned why investors would hold XRP, Ethereum, or Solana instead of simply using their networks while storing value in Bitcoin or stablecoins.

This came as the XRP price dipped as low as 5.7% in the past 24 hours, dropping to an intraday low of $2.96 and underperforming most of the top 10 cryptocurrencies. Solana was the only one who did worse during that time. Furthermore, the market saw liquidations totalling more than $460 million, with long positions bearing the majority of the losses.

Is Ripple’s Tokenization Buzz Overhyped?

This pushback came after Ripple and its partners continued to expand tokenization projects on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). Mercado Bitcoin plans to tokenize $200 million worth of real-world assets, including fixed-income and equity products, using XRPL. 

Meanwhile, Ripple also teamed up with Ctrl Alt and Dubai’s Land Department to tokenize property title deeds. This move is aimed at improving transparency and liquidity in real estate transactions.

Global interest in tokenization has also continued to climb. Institutions like BlackRock, Nasdaq, and Fidelity are expected to discuss their role in bridging TradFi and DeFi at upcoming industry roundtables. Proponents argue this could spark primary demand for RWA-linked tokens.

Pierre Rochard’s sharp dismissal of the tokenization narrative adds further weight to the growing divide between Bitcoin maximalists and altcoin advocates.