This is a common misconception about the XRP Ledger. While Ripple contributes to the open-source code of the XRP Ledger, no single entity owns, controls, or administers the XRP Ledger. It is decentralized. If Ripple ceased to exist, the Ledger would continue on.
Similarly, no single entity centrally controls XRP. A fixed quantity of 100 billion units of XRP were created before Ripple (the company) was formed, and then a portion was gifted to Ripple. Today, Ripple still owns a little more than 60% of the total supply of XRP. In 2017, Ripple placed 55 billion XRP in cryptographically-secured escrow accounts on the XRP Ledger to create certainty of XRP supply at any given time. Each month, one (1) billion XRP is released to Ripple, which it can use to help build a robust and vibrant XRP ecosystem and long-term utility.
