Emin Gün Sirer, the founder and CEO of Avalanche (AVAX), recently took a shot at rival blockchain Ripple for April Fools’ Day.
The pointed jab targeted institutional banking adoption (or the lack thereof).
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“Banks are choosing Ripple. April Fools, obviously. They actually use Avalanche,” Sirer quipped.
The XRP community claps back
The rage-baiting post successfully riled up the crypto community and garnered plenty of comments.
Ripple supporters wasted attacking everything from Avalanche’s market capitalization to its actual utility. Many users pointed out that while Sirer Ripple’s established banking partnerships are a matter of public record.
Several XRP fans turned the joke back on Sirer. One user quipped, “April Fools jokes usually only contain one fake statement,” which implies that the claim about banks using Avalanche was just as fabricated.
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Defenders quickly brought up Ripple’s long-standing institutional ties. Commenters also focused on the sheer size and performance difference between the two networks. One user pointed out that XRP has an exponentially larger market cap, telling Sirer to “Talk to us when you flip it.” Another user mocked AVAX’s recent market performance by stating, “AVAX made an all-time high this cycle. April Fools, obviously. XRP did.”
Some accused the CEO of name-dropping a larger competitor simply to farm impressions and stay relevant. “The fact that everyone and their brother mentions Ripple, yet Ripple mentions no one,” wrote @dotNetOverlord, while @InvestWithD added, “You wanted some engagement, so you decided to mention Ripple before Avalanche. So desperate.”
What’s the truth?
Both Ripple and Avalanche have secured significant partnerships with major global banks. For instance, Santander remains one of Ripple’s oldest and most active banking partners. SBI Holdings, a major financial conglomerate in Japan, has deeply integrated Ripple’s payment routing across its Asian remittance corridors.
Avalanche’s enterprise strategy revolves around its “Subnet” architecture (specifically the Evergreen Subnets). J.P. Morgan’s Onyx blockchain division uses Avalanche (via LayerZero) for a proof-of-concept regarding portfolio management. The Citi banking giant has tapped Avalanche’s Spruce Subnet to test the tokenization.