Bitcoin maximalist and BnkToTheFuture founder Simon Dixon has reignited the debate over the role of altcoins, accusing Ripple and XRP of undermining Bitcoin’s original purpose. He described XRP as “psyop”, arguing that the need to clarify the difference between it and Bitcoin has consistently helped sow division within the crypto community.
Why Ripple and XRP are ‘Psyop’
In a recent YouTube podcast with BTC Dixon sessions spoke about several factors, major historical events and prominent figures from the financial industry that have had a significant impact on the development of Bitcoin over the years. Although he mentioned about XRP and BTC competition as one of the best psychologists who broke the Bitcoin community, he also highlighted the impact altcoins in general and how “shitcoiners and gambling” distracted investors from Bitcoin for a significant period of time.
During the podcast, Dixon argued that the emergence of XRP has contributed to long-term fractures in the Bitcoin ecosystem, distracting attention from The original vision of BTC as a decentralized monetary system. He noted that the constant need to clarify the difference between XRP and Bitcoin has caused confusion among investors and internal divisions in the community.
In addition to XRP, Dixon also highlighted this Mount Gox failure in 2014 was one of the first major shocks that weakened trust and unity among BTC holders. He characterized Mt.Gox as a deliberate “war operation”, stating that the merger hacking incidents and the disappearance of gigantic amounts of BTC from the market a no longer existing stock exchange “destroyed Bitcoin’s reputation” at a critical stage of its early development and almost brought about the end of the crypto project.
Other historical events and controversies that shaped Bitcoin
On the podcast, Dixon also revisited the controversial block size war from years ago, which culminated in multiple network splits, including creation of Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and later Bitcoin SV. These difficult forks reflected deep disagreements about Bitcoin’s scalability, governance, and future direction.
According to him, each of these controversial episodes has divided the Bitcoin community and redirected energy towards competing projects rather than strengthening a single, coherent movement. He further alleged that prominent figures such as Brock Pierce, co-founder of Tether, may have been involved in difficult fork events that indirectly contributed to divisions in the BTC ecosystem.
Dixon further addressed the potential historical connections involved Jeffrey Epsteinsuggesting that controversial networks of influence may have intersected with the early development of cryptocurrencies.
While his claims remain speculative, Dixon strongly characterized these moments as part of a recurring “divide and conquer” war tactic that has undermined Bitcoin’s momentum and the development of the crypto space. Despite these internal conflicts, Bitcoin continues to recover, becoming stronger expands in adoptionmarket value and institutional recognition. It remains the number one cryptocurrency, with a market capitalization of $1.35 trillion.
Featured image from iStock, chart from Tradingview.com
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