Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz has warned that XRP and Cardano (ADA) must demonstrate clear real-world utility to remain relevant, arguing that community loyalty alone will not sustain their valuations as investors gain more choices in the cryptocurrency market.
In a recent interview, Novogratz said both assets sit at a “dangerous precipice” and could see their prices fall further if they fail to show tangible value for users. He framed the current phase of the crypto market as a shift away from hype-driven tokens toward projects with measurable fundamentals.
“Charles Hoskingson, bless his soul, he’s kept the Cardano community with a blockchain that people don’t really use a lot,” Novogratz said. “He has had a strong community just like XRP. Can you keep it together when there are more options?”
Novogratz pointed to a wave of newer projects launched over the past year that, in his view, have delivered clearer value propositions. He cited derivatives platform Hyperliquid as one example, highlighting its token buy-back and burning mechanisms as features designed to benefit users and token holders.
Looking ahead, Novogratz predicted that many crypto platforms will race to become neobank-style service providers. Over the next three years, he expects traditional cryptocurrency exchanges to rebrand and expand into money market products, tokenized equities, and broader financial services.
Despite criticism that they rely heavily on devoted communities, both Cardano and XRP have been pushing to expand their real-world use cases.
Cardano has pursued integrations in areas such as digital identity and governance, aiming to attract more developers and enterprise users. Its Midnight network is positioned to draw privacy-focused developers interested in building applications with enhanced confidentiality features.
XRP, meanwhile, has been refocusing on payments infrastructure following the resolution of its high-profile legal dispute with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The token is increasingly used in cross-border remittances and on-demand liquidity solutions designed to move value between financial institutions more efficiently.
Ripple, the company closely associated with XRP, recently received conditional approval to operate as a national trust bank in the United States. That status is expected to play a role in managing reserves for RLUSD, Ripple’s planned U.S. dollar-based stablecoin, and could further embed XRP-related services in regulated financial environments.
For Novogratz, the long-term outlook for XRP, Cardano, and other established cryptocurrencies will depend less on brand recognition and community strength, and more on whether they can deliver durable, widely adopted real-world applications.