What Happens to XRP Price When Ripple Runs Out of Escrow Tokens? Analysts Break It Down Crypto News

on March 23, 2026

Some in the XRP community say the token could become hard to buy in the future. But looking at views from David Schwartz, Bill Morgan, and analyst Mickle, the picture is more nuanced; it’s not about sudden scarcity, but gradual changes over time.

Schwartz’s Big Signal: A Deflationary Asset

David Schwartz, Ripple CTO, recently described XRP as one of the most prominent deflationary currencies, a statement that significantly reframes how the asset is viewed. Unlike most major cryptocurrencies, XRP does not rely on inflation to sustain its network. Instead, every transaction burns a small amount of XRP, gradually reducing the total supply over time.

“Hey, Grock, can you explain to this person who created XRP and whether it is

one of the most popular deflationary currencies in existence?” So the keyword there is the most popular deflationary currencies in existence.”

This puts XRP in a unique position. While networks like Ethereum or Solana expand their supply to reward validators, XRP avoids continuous dilution. Its design leans on efficiency and utility rather than incentives, allowing it to maintain a deflationary structure in a largely inflationary crypto market.

“Not Anytime Soon,” Says Bill Morgan

Despite the long-term deflationary angle, Bill Morgan offers a counterpoint. He said that a significant portion of XRP is still held in escrow by Ripple, meaning supply is far from constrained in the near term.

According to Morgan, the idea that XRP could suddenly become hard to get does not align with current market conditions. Any real supply squeeze, if it happens at all, is likely years away. For now, XRP remains in a phase where availability is still expanding rather than shrinking.

The Real Story Behind Supply

Building on this, Crypto analyst Mickle’s video analysis shifts the focus from present scarcity to adapting supply dynamics. He explains that Ripple’s ongoing sales are increasing the circulating supply, effectively delaying any immediate scarcity narrative.

At the same time, this process is quietly changing the structure of ownership. As Ripple continues to release XRP, its dominance over the total supply declines. Over time, this leads to a more distributed and potentially more decentralized asset.

Why Faster Selling Could Actually Help

One of the angles in the analysis is the idea that faster XRP sales could be beneficial. Drawing from Morgan’s perspective, Mickle hints that accelerating distribution could strengthen the market by reducing centralized control.

Rather than viewing these sales purely as selling pressure, the argument reframes them as a necessary transition phase. A wider distribution of XRP could improve market confidence and make the asset more resilient in the long run.

XRP Scarcity Comes Later, Not Now

The key takeaway is a shift in expectations. XRP is not becoming scarce today, but its underlying design allows for scarcity to emerge over time. As Ripple’s holdings decrease and transaction activity grows, the deflationary mechanism could start to matter more.

In that context, the idea of XRP becoming “hard to get” is not immediate, but it is not entirely unrealistic either. It simply belongs to a later stage of the asset’s evolution.

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