Hoskinson Announces XRP DeFi Arrival, Unlocks $100B Liquidity Via Midnight

Quick breakdown

Charles Hoskinson confirms XRP DeFi is “coming” through Cardano’s Midnight chain, enabling private smart contracts for XRPL assets.
The proposal involves wrapping XRP on Midnight to support lending, borrowing, and yield farming, tapping $100 billion+ in idle XRP holdings.
Initiative builds on Hoskinson’s December outreach to the XRP community for DeFi Summit collaboration at the University of Edinburgh.

In a recent, high-profile interview on the Scott Melker podcast, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson offered a stark and candid assessment of the cryptocurrency landscape, framing the year 2026 as a pivotal “make or break” moment for the industry, particularly concerning a potential retail investor revival. Following the seismic collapses of major entities like FTX and the Terra/Luna ecosystem in 2022, the crypto space has been battling a prolonged period of burnout, characterized by a significant retraction of retail participation and general cynicism. Hoskinson argues that the industry’s ability to re-engage this crucial demographic will determine its long-term viability.

Emerging tech to counter new threats

Hoskinson emphasized that new technology is crucial for restoring user trust and security, citing AI-driven hacking as a major threat. He contrasted the limitations of older privacy tech like Zcash and the risks of centralized stablecoins with Cardano’s solution. Cardano’s Midnight Protocol is a privacy-centric sidechain designed to counter AI threats, offering data protection and regulatory compliance to re-engage users wary of centralized risk and surveillance, making it key for decentralized finance security.

The Cardano ecosystem’s optimistic outlook and cross-chain expansion

Despite personal financial setbacks, Cardano’s Charles Hoskinson is highly optimistic, predicting a significant DeFi surge in 2026 driven by tech maturity and cross-chain focus. Crucially, he announced the integration of XRP into the Cardano ecosystem via the Midnight sidechain. This move aims to unlock an estimated $100 billion in XRP liquidity, offering XRP holders new DeFi utilities, staking, and privacy tools, positioning it as a major catalyst for retail revival in 2026.

Notably, Hoskinson slammed Donald Trump’s WLFI token, calling the family-backed venture a “frustrating” distraction. He argues this partisan project makes bipartisan regulatory progress, like the FIT21 bill, nearly impossible, risking years of stagnation.

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