A 12-year-old USPTO document has sparked claims that the U.S. government owns the “XRP” patent

An old document is making the rounds on Twitter, leading some into believing that the U.S. government owns the patent for “XRP,” the third-largest crypto.

The document in question was originally filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and registered in December 2013. It covered the brand name XRP for use in financial services, such as “providing secure payment options to members of an online community via a global computer network through the use of traditional currency and virtual currency.”

The resurfacing of the old document, however, came with misinterpretations that the application was filed by the U.S. government, which means an endorsement of Ripple or XRP. 

Does the U.S. government own the XRP patent?

While the document is legit, it wasn’t filed by the federal government, nor is it a patent application. It’s nothing more than a trademark registration filed by OpenCoin, Inc., which is now known as Ripple.

OpenCoin was founded in September 2012 by Chris Larsen and McCaleb. It rebranded to Ripple Labs in 2013 and was shortened to Ripple in 2015.

Trademark registrations are not a vote of approval. It’s something a company does to seek protection for its brand names and stop everyone else from using them. In this case, Ripple filed to protect the “XRP” word name, and it’s just one of the many applications initiated by the company. 

Earlier this year, Ripple filed a trademark application for “Ripple Custody,” raising speculations that the firm could launch a crypto wallet or custodial services. It had also filed for “Ripple Payments,” “RLUSD,” and “Ripple USD” trademarks in 2024, in anticipation of launching its stablecoin, RLUSD.

According to the USPTO, Ripple Labs currently has 67 trademark applications. Elsewhere, a report shows Ripple Labs has issued a total of 39 patents globally, with only 18 having been granted. Of all the 39 patents, more than 62% patents are active.

XRP becomes the third-largest crypto

XRP, meanwhile, has reclaimed the third spot in the crypto market. At the time of writing, it was trading at $3.08 on Coingecko, with a $183 billion market cap. The price has been soaring so far this year, as investors began to see an end to the years-long legal tussle between Ripple and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). 

Cryptopolitan reported Friday that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has approved an agreement for both sides to drop their appeals. The case now moves into final enforcement proceedings at the district court level. Judge Analisa Torres’s ruling will remain in effect once dismissal is granted.

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