Over the past 24 hours, the price of XRP has broken through $3 for the first time since 2018, continuing to lead the cryptocurrency market in 2025. The 15-day gain has reached 41%, outpacing the top 10 cryptocurrencies.
According to Coinmarkcap data, the current XRP price is only 17% away from its all-time high of $3.84, and with a current market capitalization of $170 billion, the token's market value has already surpassed that of asset management giant BlackRock.
This surge is driven by the expectation of crypto-friendly policies and the reform of US digital asset regulation, as the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple have been engaged in a multi-year legal battle over the sale of XRP tokens.
Abra's over-the-counter trader Diego Cardenas said in a report: "This surge is driven by an increasing number of partnerships, the launch of the Ripple stablecoin RLUSD, and speculation about a potential spot XRP ETF."
Ripple President Monica Long said in an interview last week that she expects the spot ETF to be "approved soon" as the new government's approval will accelerate the process. In addition, Ripple's leadership has had direct contact with the incoming US government, with CEO Brad Garlinghouse and Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty recently meeting with Trump, indicating that the two sides may cooperate in shaping a regulatory environment favorable to digital assets.
Furthermore, the current surge in XRP price is in line with the continued accumulation by "whales" holding between 1 million and 10 million tokens.
Santiment analysis firm points out that since November 12, addresses holding between 1 million and 10 million tokens have accumulated 140 million XRP, worth about $3.8 billion, and have continued to accumulate even during the price consolidation period after the December 2024 high.
XRP's Google search popularity surpasses Bitcoin
The price of XRP and its holders have shown strong resilience in recent weeks. Google Trends data shows that on January 15, global Google search volume for XRP surpassed that of Bitcoin. Over the past year, XRP has led Bitcoin in search volume twice, the most recent being in November 2024.
Analysts: XRP's rise driven by spot investors
In 2024, the open interest of futures contracts for major assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum reached record highs, highlighting the importance of the derivatives market during bull markets. However, the recent rise in XRP has been primarily driven by spot investors.
Order flow analyst Dom said the retest of $3 for XRP was entirely driven by spot buying pressure. He pointed out that during the 15% weekly gain in XRP, the funding rate and spot buying premium did not rise significantly. Dom said: "If this happened to Bitcoin, I would straight up say we're about to see a massive move up."
At the same time, some industry participants also pointed out that if the two assets continue to rise at the same price ratio, XRP's performance may surpass Ethereum.
Sovrun co-founder Jeth said there is "no reason" to hold Ethereum now. Although Ethereum has better "fundamentals", XRP has received positive regulatory support, as the first crypto-friendly US government is set to take office on January 20.
From a technical perspective, XRP has shown strong growth indicators, breaking out of its bullish flag pattern after a 105% rally by the end of 2024. However, its Relative Strength Index (RSI) is at 79.5, indicating the token is overbought and may lead to a short-term correction or consolidation.
Technical analyst Dark Defender emphasized the "bullish breakout" on the XRP monthly chart on the X platform, drawing a parallel with the 2017 bull market, when XRP surged 1022%.
The analyst believes that based on the Fibonacci retracement levels of the 2017 rally, XRP's price could potentially reach $10.23 or even $18.23 in the short term, whether it's "going to the moon" or "going to Mars", these two target values could be achieved by 2025.
