Coinbase XRP Listing Rumors Reignite Delisting and Fee Debate

Resurfaced X posts from Ripple CTO Emeritus David Schwartz have reignited debate over whether Coinbase intentionally refused to list XRP “on purpose.” Crypto commentator Digital Asset Investor pointed to Schwartz’s discussion of a hypothetical “listing fee” scenario, where an exchange allegedly asked for millions in payments before agreeing to list, even though it would later benefit from XRP liquidity and adoption. Schwartz did not confirm any real Coinbase demand for “millions.” He argued that real-world negotiations can be misread as pay-for-listing, especially when SEC-era litigation distorts narratives. The latest article also reiterates Schwartz’s claims that XRP once contributed about 20% of Coinbase revenue after listing, and that the XRP community interpreted his May 2023 comment as likely referring to Coinbase. Traders also get a reminder of the Coinbase timeline around the SEC case: Coinbase listed XRP before the SEC lawsuit (Dec 2020), delisted during the SEC-backed security argument (2021), and relisted after Judge Analisa Torres ruled XRP was not a security (July 2023). At the time of writing, XRP trades near $1.32, down more than 2% on the day (CoinMarketCap). Overall, this is more of a sentiment catalyst around the Coinbase–XRP regulatory legacy than a new exchange action or fresh regulatory ruling.