Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson sees a multi-billion-dollar opportunity in Bitcoin and XRP DeFi, recently disclosing Cardano’s plans to move into the space.

Hoskinson has incessantly teased Cardano’s initiative to bring decentralized finance (DeFi) onto the Bitcoin network. Recently, he has added XRP to the picture, teasing a synergy with both networks to bring smart contract functionalities.

Speaking with Bitcoin.com’s Frederick Munanwa yesterday, the Cardano founder expressed his desire to see XRP DeFi on the Cardano blockchain. He stressed that it would unlock $140 billion worth of value for the layer 1 network.

XRP DeFi Coming to Cardano

Hoskinson has been basking in Cardano’s newfound bromance with the XRP ecosystem. After resolving its years-long rift with the blockchain community, he and Ripple, the largest contributor to the XRP ecosystem, have teased a partnership.

The Cardano founder noted that he has a strong relationship with Ripple and plans to introduce an innovation that has been lacking on the XRP Ledger, despite its extensive development.

He noted that Cardano would like to integrate smart contract features into the XRP Ledger, thereby expanding the network’s functionalities and unlocking billions of dollars for the Cardano ecosystem. Hoskinson specifically noted that he would love to see XRP DeFi on Cardano.

Notably, Hoskinson has previously elaborated on this strategy. In an earlier interview with a market analyst at eToro, he noted that Cardano developers would add a computational layer to the XRP Ledger, bridging DeFi features such as native lending and borrowing, among others.

Bitcoin DeFi Four Times Larger Than Ethereum and Solana Combined

Meanwhile, in his latest commentary, Hoskinson also reiterated that Bitcoin DeFi would be massive. Specifically, he argued that at its peak, it would be worth four times the combined value of Ethereum and Solana. Currently, the two chains have a cumulative TVL of $73.5 billion. 

Furthermore, he noted that Cardano is aggressively moving in that direction, as he identifies the innovation as the source of significant growth in terms of TVL and transaction volume in a competitive crypto landscape. Hoskinson also emphasized that the Cardano network has built-in advantages for this integration, like Cardano sharing the same UTXO design as Bitcoin.

Interestingly, several analysts have highlighted the potential for Cardano if it enables DeFi on Bitcoin. Altcoin Oracle, a Cardano Drep, has speculated that ADA would hit $20 per coin if it becomes the sole enabler to Bitcoin DeFi.