As well as the miners, the disparity is actually greater in Bitcoin than in Ripple.
https://www.businessinsider.com.au/b...18-1?r=US&IR=T
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/study...222710345.html
Just because there is no central bank or government at the top, it is delusional to believe that BTC can't be manipulated at whim. Joe Average has only ever been riding the coattails of the few actually relevant holders.