- “Cult of bagholders”
- XRP’s underwhelming year
On Sunday, Fox Business Network Senior Correspondent Charles Gasparino started feuding with the “XRP Army”once again.
In a series of blistering posts on X (formerly Twitter), Gasparino took aim at the intelligence of retail investors holding the token. The controversial host has questioned whether they realize they are ostensibly serving as exit liquidity for Ripple executives.
The latest flare-up began when Gasparino responded to a user regarding the financial logic of holding the asset. “Setting aside the idiocy of you holding XRP thinking you’re getting rich,” Gasparino wrote, “how much did Brad Garlinghouse and the gang profit off of your idiocy? Sad Ha!”
The Fox News host has doubled down on the narrative in another tweet. “Don’t you wish [SEC Chair] Jay [Clayton] made Ripple people disclose how much money they made on XRP while you lost all that money?” he taunted. “You really make this easy.”
“Cult of bagholders”
Gasparino, who has previously claimed credit for putting the XRP community “on the map in a mainstream way,” has spent the better part of late 2025 and early 2026 sparring with community stalwarts.
The television personality has frequently characterized the community as a “cult of bagholders,” engaging in bizarre, specific spats with prominent accounts. In interactions with XRP influencer Mr. Huber (@Leerzeit), whom Gasparino refers to as “Mr. Germany,” the host mocked the user’s purchasing power relative to the token’s performance.
“Whenever Mr. Germany doesn’t have money for a bratwurst or a little schnitzel because he lost it all on $XRP this clown shows up on my timeline,” Gasparino tweeted in late November. “Sorry this isn’t helping XRP cult of bagholders rich; as far as management’s concerned, they’ve already cashed out.”
The vitriol comes amidst a period of price volatility for the asset, which Gasparino described recently as “flailing” and “getting absolutely crushed.”
The XRP Army frequently accuses the journalist of bias or carrying water for SEC interests. Gasparino maintains his role is that of a reality checker.
XRP’s underwhelming year
2025 was supposed to be the “golden year” for XRP. Following the SEC settlement in May, the token staged a massive rally, hitting an all-time high of roughly $3.65 in July. The euphoria was deafening, with predictions of double-digit prices flooding the timeline.
However, since that July peak, XRP has bled out nearly 45% of its value, languishing around the $2.00 range through late 2025 and into early 2026.
Gasparino has seized on this “round-trip” price action to characterize the community as “bagholders.” Back in November, Gasparino tweeted that XRP was |getting absolutely crushed.”