Ripple has really lost its luster

Ripple down 23% today

It's easy-come, easy-go in the cryptoworld.

Ripple Ripple Ripple is both a cryptocurrency (XRP) and a blockchain-based digital network for payments and other financial transactions.Its mining process differs from the rest as it uses a consensus mechanism to confirm its transactions which is supported by a group of bank-owned servers.These transactions are much more energy-efficient than, for example, bitcoin, take less time to confirm and have lower transactional costs. In terms of market capitalization, Ripple is currently sitting in the top 5.Ripple Ripple is both a cryptocurrency (XRP) and a blockchain-based digital network for payments and other financial transactions.Its mining process differs from the rest as it uses a consensus mechanism to confirm its transactions which is supported by a group of bank-owned servers.These transactions are much more energy-efficient than, for example, bitcoin, take less time to confirm and have lower transactional costs. In terms of market capitalization, Ripple is currently sitting in the top 5.Ripple Read this Term surged to prominence in late December and the run continued through January 4 when it hit $3.31. At the peak, Ripple's CEO was worth more than Mark Zuckerberg.

Times have rapidly shifted and it's down to $1.34, including a 23% loss today.

Part of the story is a misunderstanding of what Ripple was all about from the beginning.

The company itself uses a system it calls xCurrent to transfer money but it does not use the Ripple token (XRP). The token is used on a new system called xRapid but it has virtually no adoption.

Here's a good article on Seeking Alpha.

In the bigger picture, the way the market fell in (and out) of love with Ripple is concerning for the mania. If the drop in Ripple continues, those where were late to the party are going to feel burned.