Ripple co-founder loses $44 billion on paper during cryptocurrency crash

With XRP trading near $1 Wednesday, Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen holds the equivalent of just $15.8 billion, according to CNBC calculations using figures from Forbes.

That's down $44 billion from Larsen's paper worth of $59.9 billion on Jan. 4, when XRP hit a record high of $3.84.

Bitcoin's drop also means that twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss no longer hold the equivalent of more than $1 billion of the digital currency.

The digital currency plunge has wiped billions from the paper fortune of a cryptocurrency billionaire in just a few weeks.

Ripple's XRP coin has fallen 74 percent from an all-time high of $3.84 hit on Jan. 4, erasing $44 billion from the holdings of Chris Larsen, co-founder and executive chairman of Ripple.

With XRP trading near $1 Wednesday, Larsen now holds the equivalent of just $15.8 billion, according to CNBC calculations using figures from Forbes. Citing sources at Ripple, Forbes said earlier this month that Larsen has 5.19 billion of XRP and a 17 percent stake in the start-up. Ripple holds 61.3 billion of the 100 billion XRP coins in existence.

At XRP's peak on Jan. 4, Larsen was worth $59.9 billion. That made him one of the five richest people in the U.S. and wealthier than Google's founders, based on Forbes' rich list.