Which Cryptocurrency Is More Likely to Be a Millionaire Maker? XRP vs. Cardano

XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) and Cardano (CRYPTO: ADA) have both been pitched as potential fast tracks to building up a hoard of seven figures. While it's generally not appropriate for serious investors to make purchases in the hopes of making millions overnight, over a long enough timescale, with enough diligent investment and the right asset selected, it is indeed possible.

Between these two coins, both are well known, liquid, and still nowhere near their prior all‑time highs. That combination tempts bargain hunters. But price alone never mints millionaires, even in crypto; it's necessary to have a real set of fundamentals that'll drive a large influx of new capital even after a large amount has already shown up and stuck around.

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Let's examine which of these two actually has a credible shot at compounding long enough to turn persistent dollar‑cost averaging (DCA) into life‑changing gains.

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XRP's march forward will be tough to interrupt

Let's start with some cold back-of-the-napkin arithmetic.

XRP changes hands at about $2.19 today. A $10,000 position would need roughly a 100x gain to reach $1 million, at which point the coin's market cap would be roughly $11 trillion. For Cardano, it'd require a future market cap of around $2.3 trillion. Those numbers are long shots for both, but which chain has the better odds?

Utility is a good starting proxy. On June 15, the XRP Ledger (XRPL) processed 5.1 million transactions in a single day, breaching its former records. That speaks directly to its core use case, which is to make cross-border transactions cheaper and faster than they would be using legacy technologies. High volume is a clear sign that its target user base, which is to say, institutional investors, are at least to some degree utilizing the chain for what it was intended to do.

In contrast, Cardano lately averages closer to 50,000 daily transactions. It isn't precisely clear who the chain's target users are meant to be, but regardless of who it is, they do not appear to be actually using the chain very much at all in the grand scheme of things. That means it is less likely to grow rapidly.

XRP also has an edge when it comes to competing in growth markets, like real‑world‑asset (RWA) tokenization. XRPL already hosts roughly $160 million in tokenized bonds, treasuries, and other off‑chain assets. Per some estimates, the tokenized asset market could grow from $0.6 trillion this year to reach $18.9 trillion by 2033.

If XRP keeps compounding its early share of that pie, a pathway to triple‑digit gains exists. But Cardano has no comparable wedge into the same megatrend right now -- and, quite concerningly, it isn't actually exposed to any other trending growth segments either.

Where the rubber meets the ledger

Tech development is a major part of each coin's potential to make investors into millionaires. Once again, XRP takes the win.

Ripple, the business that issues XRP, has spent 2025 adding tools that its core customer base actually wants. Ripple's developer summit this month unveiled identity‑layer upgrades that bake know‑your‑customer (KYC) regulatory compliance into the protocol, which is an existential requirement for large asset managers.

Cardano, unfortunately, remains heavy on research papers and light on production traffic.

Hydra, its long‑promised layer‑2 (L2) scaling system, is still in bug‑fix mode after recent security checks. Meanwhile, daily active wallet addresses hover near 24,000 -- far from being a user base of inspiring size. The chain's entire fee haul is less than $8,000 per day. Those metrics would be respectable for a start-up network, but they are tepid for a 9‑year‑old project.

Developer activity is the lone area where Cardano shines, as in early 2025, it ranked among the top three chains in terms of updates pushed. Those high commit counts show some momentum, yet code is only valuable when users need what is being built, which is the main problem with the chain. Until Cardano's decentralized finance (DeFi) features become must‑have features for a defined audience, its robust research culture may not translate into price appreciation, and so far, it hasn't.

For investors, the takeaway is clear. XRP is already solving paying customers' problems and charging fees to do so. Cardano is still refining the pitch.

Which coin has the better shot?

XRP is the coin that is more likely to make investors richer, but it probably won't deliver the eye-popping returns overnight that are necessary to make millionaires.

Still, if the goal is to choose the stronger long‑term compounding machine, XRP currently offers better odds. Its growing transaction flow, embedded regulatory compliance features, and head start in the swelling RWA market create tangible revenue streams that can support higher valuations.

Separately, Cardano remains an interesting technology play, and its staunch community plus academic rigor may yet pay off. For now, though, owning the coin is a wager that the team will eventually find a killer use case that drives non‑speculative demand. That might happen, but until it does, it is an investment thesis in search of evidence, not a smart place to put your capital.

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Alex Carchidi has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends XRP. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.