Former Ripple CTO Draws a Sharp Line Between Investing and Gambling

Former Ripple CTO David Schwartz challenged the popular claim that stock markets and prediction markets are just casinos, arguing on X that the comparison ignores a fundamental economic divide.

Schwartz stepped back from daily operations at Ripple at the end of 2025 and became CTO Emeritus. He entered the debate on June 17, 2026, responding to users who argued that “trading” is a euphemism for gambling.

Gambling Moves Value, and Investing Grows It

The exchange began when X users argued that prediction markets and stock markets operate like casinos. Their core claim was that “trading” serves as a polished cover for placing bets. Schwartz rejected that framing.

He separated the two by their economic function. Gambling moves existing value between participants. Investing generates new value.

A key way to see the difference is this: If you have positive expected value in gambling, something has gone very wrong. If you have negative expected value in investing, something has gone very wrong.

— David 'JoelKatz' Schwartz (@JoelKatz) June 17, 2026

“A key way to see the difference is this: If you have positive expected value in gambling, something has gone very wrong. If you have negative expected value in investing, something has gone very wrong,” says Schwartz

The logic works symmetrically. A gambler who consistently beats the house reveals a flaw in the system, not a feature. An investor who consistently loses in a functioning market faces a problem with their approach or the market itself. That test shifts the burden of proof onto the system’s design.

A casino’s purpose is to redistribute money among players. A market’s purpose is to direct capital toward productive use and generate returns across the broader economy over time.

Schwartz’s Long View on Markets

The remarks carry added weight from someone who co-architected the XRP Ledger. Schwartz served as Ripple’s CTO for more than a decade before transitioning to an advisory board role at the end of 2025. He remains one of the most prominent technical voices in the XRP ecosystem.

The Ripple EX CTO also drew significant attention earlier this year for his XRP escrow price views, directly challenging viral price targets. He used market-cap math to show that many community projections rest on valuations exceeding the entire global money supply.

XRP (XRP) trades at $1.19 at the time of writing, down 3.64% over the past 24 hours. The asset holds a top-six market rank with total capitalization near $74.2 billion.

The comments also land as prediction markets face state bans across the US. At least 12 states have moved to classify event contract platforms as gambling under state law.

Whether policymakers adopt Schwartz’s value-creation framing or the casino label favored by his critics could shape how these markets are regulated in the months ahead.