Despite the lack of concrete evidence, the recent rumor sparked by Shawn Oroogle, a World Economic Forum member, regarding a potential partnership between XRP, Hedera (HBAR), and Goldman Sachs has certainly piqued the interest of the crypto community. The speculation, although still unconfirmed, has led to heightened anticipation, especially among XRP enthusiasts who are hopeful of a significant development for the cryptocurrency.
Adding to the speculation is a past dialogue between Ripple CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, and Hedera Co-Founder, Leemon Baird, where the possibility of a blockchain collaboration was discussed. While Ripple and Hedera do have an established relationship, the involvement of Goldman Sachs in such a partnership remains unverified at this point.
This speculation emerged concomitantly with news that Goldman Sachs is actively exploring new opportunities in the blockchain arena. A recent Bloomberg report revealed that Goldman Sachs Group is in discussions with potential partners to make its digital asset platform an independent entity. The new entity would focus on enabling large-scale financial institutions to develop, trade, and settle financial products using blockchain technology.
Established in 2022, Goldman Sachs’ Digital Assets Platform has been instrumental in issuing traditional financial products via blockchain. It has played a crucial role in several high-profile transactions, including bonds for the European Investment Bank. While the new independent entity will eventually take ownership of the platform, Goldman Sachs plans to retain its digital assets team and continue to broaden its operations in the digital assets sector. Yet, this recent move by Goldman Sachs does not bear any direct link to Ripple or XRP.
On the other hand, Ripple and Hedera have a solid alliance. In May, XRPL Labs and Ripple joined Hedera among other industry leaders as founding members of the DeRec Alliance. The DeRec protocol is designed to streamline the recovery and security of digital assets, accounts, and private keys by enabling users to securely recover secrets via a network of trusted helpers. In September, Ripple and Hedera also became founding members of the MiCA Crypto Alliance, which aims to help blockchain projects comply with the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation.
In conclusion, while the rumors of a potential partnership between XRP, Hedera, and Goldman Sachs have stirred up excitement in the crypto community, there is currently no solid evidence to substantiate these claims. Goldman Sachs’ recent actions remain unrelated to Ripple or XRP, even as Ripple and Hedera continue to collaborate on various blockchain initiatives.
