While the world was distracted by Bitcoin’s flirtation with $100K, XRP, the native cryptocurrency of digital-payments firm Ripple, displaced Tether as the world’s third-largest crypto by market cap, according to some trackers.
XRP, a darling of crypto traders for years, shot up to $142 billion on Monday.
It was the third-largest cryptocurrency until December 2020, when US regulators sued Ripple for breaching investor protection laws.
The case became a defining moment for the crypto industry and provided some regulatory clarity when a US judge eventually handed Ripple a partial victory. It was the first time the SEC lost part of its argument that cryptocurrencies should be defined as securities and submit to its oversight.
The regulator decided not to appeal the verdict and dropped the case a few months later. Given all the other crypto cases winding their way through the system though, XRP never quite recovered.
Enter Donald Trump. XRP has been on fire since the former president won reelection last month. He’s promised to regulate the sector and make the US the global capital of crypto again.
It’s risen more than 375% from $0.5 per token on the eve of the vote to $2.50 earlier today. (No, that’s not a typo.)
Turning tide
Then on Saturday, Fox reported that New York authorities were all set to give the go-head for RLUSD, Ripple’s new stablecoin. It could be launched as soon as Wednesday.
This morning, WisdomTree, an asset manager with nearly $100 billion under management, moved another step along with several other major firms in the race to issue XRP exchange-traded funds. Getting an ETF would open up XRP to a whole new class of traditional and small investors – and give its price another adrenaline shot.
The whales, or major players in crypto, could be swimming in to grab some profits at this point, so prices may drop for a while. 🐋
If Ripple’s stablecoin does come to life later this week, though, XRP could well be charging back towards its all-time high of $3.40.
Ripple’s introduction of new products and services, including the RLUSD, and its partnerships with banks and financial institutions have only increased demand for XRP, says Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget Research.
“Ripple’s success directly impacts XRP’s value, given that XRP is integral to the company’s ecosystem.”
That’s it from us. You know what to do.
