Ripple is a real-time gross settlement system, currency exchange and remittance network made by Ripple Labs Inc. , a US-based technology company. Ripple is built on distributed open source internet protocols, and supports tokens that represent fiat currencies, cryptocurrency, commodities, or other value units such as frequent flier miles or minute moves. [3] [4] Released in 2012, Ripple was intended to activate "safe, fast and almost free global financial transactions of any size without any chargeback."