Cyber Capital founder Justin Bons publicly accused XRP supporters of misleading retail investors by calling the network decentralized, describing the promotion as straight-up fraud. His criticism centers on the XRP Ledger’s emergency server software release version 3.4.1, distributed in late September and expected to become mandatory for network synchronization after the fixBatchV1_2 amendment activates on October 9, 2026.
According to XRPL developers, version 3.4.1 addresses undisclosed security vulnerabilities, and the relevant source code was temporarily withheld to prevent attackers from exploiting unpatched nodes. Once activated, servers that have not upgraded to 3.4.1 are expected to become amendment blocked and unable to remain synchronized with the network. Developers have said the code and a technical retrospective will be published once disclosure no longer creates the same security risk. Bons argues that requiring operators to run software they cannot fully inspect conflicts with the transparency expected from open-source blockchains.
Bons also challenged the XRP Ledger’s validator selection model, comparing it to Proof-of-Authority because servers commonly rely on recommended Unique Node Lists published by Ripple and the XRP Ledger Foundation. Although anyone can operate an XRPL validator and operators can select their own trusted validators, Bons says the publishers of recommended lists hold considerable influence over governance. XRPL documentation emphasizes that strong overlap between unique node lists is important for maintaining consensus, while Ripple operates only one validator on a commonly used recommended list. The dispute unfolds alongside broader XRPL upgrades, including batch transactions and delegated permissions.
