Bitcoin Maximalist Prefers FTX Refund Claims Over XRP, Sparks Debate

The long-running rivalry between XRP supporters and Bitcoin maximalists has resurfaced after a controversial remark from crypto author Adam Livingston.

Livingston, a renowned Bitcoin maxi, said on X that he would prefer exposure to the collapsed exchange FTX to holding XRP. “I’d rather have $100,000 in FTX refund claims than $100,000 in XRP,” Livingston wrote.

Meanwhile, Livingston’s latest post follows a series of earlier statements in which he criticized XRP’s long-term performance relative to Bitcoin.

In August 2025, he wrote that he would “rather have $100 in Kohl’s Cash than $100 in XRP,” referring to Kohl’s store reward program.

A month later, he doubled down on the criticism. Specifically, he declared that XRP would eventually fall to zero against Bitcoin and repeated the well-known Bitcoin maximalist phrase: “There is no second best.”

By October 2025, Livingston compared the two assets using historical price data. He pointed out that XRP had returned to roughly $3.02, the same level it traded at in January 2018. Over that same period, he noted that Bitcoin had climbed from roughly $17,000 to around $120,000, representing a gain of more than 600%.

Given the disparity in return, he concluded that “everything goes to zero against Bitcoin.”

His commentary continued into 2026. In February, Livingston highlighted that XRP had fallen dramatically from its peak, noting that the asset had dipped by more than 70%. To him, it has no chance of recovery.

WOW: XRP DOWN -88.63% FROM THE TOP OVER 8 YEARS AGO!

Unlikely to EVER recover! pic.twitter.com/JHHmmUY1kj

— Adam Livingston (@AdamBLiv) February 11, 2026

Expectedly, Livingston’s latest attracted significant attention. One commenter asked why XRP often provokes such strong negative sentiments from Bitcoin maximalists.

“Why does XRP threaten Bitcoin maxis to such an extreme?” asked X user @inked_investing.

Honest question, why does XRP threaten Bitcoin maxis to such an extreme?

— Inked Investing (@inked_investing) March 6, 2026

The question draws on the well-known ideological clash between the XRP and Bitcoin communities over technology, decentralization, and investment narratives.

While Bitcoin maximalists frequently argue that Bitcoin remains the only truly decentralized digital asset, XRP supporters often counter that the asset serves a different purpose as infrastructure for global payments and liquidity.

Despite heavy criticism, XRP advocates continue to argue that the asset offers a different risk-reward profile than Bitcoin.

For example, crypto educator Edoardo Farina previously argued that XRP could offer stronger upside potential due to its lower price and expanding use cases in payments and liquidity infrastructure.

According to that perspective, smaller market capitalization assets can generate larger percentage gains during bull cycles than Bitcoin.

The debate between Bitcoin and XRP supporters remains one of the longest-running rivalries in the digital asset industry.

Bitcoin advocates view the asset as the ultimate store of value and the foundation of decentralized finance. XRP proponents, on the other hand, see the asset as a tool for global liquidity and financial infrastructure.

As a result, disagreements often emerge not only over price performance but also over the role each asset should play in the evolving crypto economy.