Bitcoin protocol uses a system known as mining, as a system of confirmation, we use a system called consensus. The consensus system doesn’t consume meaningful amounts of electricity to confirm transactions as you have in bitcoin, and importantly you can put any type of currency in the protocol. In Ripple you can create dollar balances, euro balances, airline mile balances, so in that way it functions, what we think of as an international value rail, and we think that’s an incredibly important development in financial technology that will have a key positive impact throughout the global financial system.

http://www.pymnts.com/in-depth/2015/the-sea-change-ripple-labs-sees-for-fintech/#.VYWWuRNViko