On Dec. 14, XRP, the third-biggest cryptocurrency, showed a major spike in a crucial indicator.
XRP Open Interest (OI) has soared 13.3% to $3.77 billion, according to data provided by CoinGlass.
The Open Interest data helps measure the total number of outstanding derivatives contracts on the market, giving actual insights into how exposed traders are to an asset.
XRP trading volume also soared 8.87% to $12.83 billion. The price skyrocketed to $2.53, but a correction followed soon after. At the time of writing, XRP is traded at $2.46.
Will XRP ETFs launch soon?
The cryptocurrency has also attracted more attention due to speculation surrounding the launch of an XRP ETF. As reported by U.Today, such firms as Bitwise and Canary Capital have already proposed several spot ETF products.
The head of BlackRock’s ETF department has debunked the recent speculations on the firm's plans to file for an XRP ETF.
The U.S. regulators, and the SEC in particular, are expected to pass ETFs, like SOL and XRP, by the end of next year.
As reported by U.Today, at the end of November, asset manager WisdomTree submitted a real filing for a spot XRP ETF. Aside from that one, several other finance managers have done the same this year — Bitwise, 21Shares and Canary Capital.
Ripple v. SEC
On Tuesday, the RLUSD stablecoin officially obtained approval from the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS).
Ripple will be authorized to offer RLUSD to the public, marking a significant step into New York's regulated digital finance market and strengthening its position within the stablecoin ecosystem. RLUSD will provide a U.S.-regulated alternative to Tether’s $130 billion USDT, which dominates the stablecoin market.
Ripple's move comes amid increased competition, with companies like PayPal also developing stablecoins to capitalize on this lucrative sector. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has directed the SEC to file its last arguments by Jan. 15, after which the court will assess motions to either dismiss or proceed with portions of the case.
The SEC filed suit against Ripple in December 2020, alleging that Ripple’s sale of XRP constituted an unregistered securities offering. Ripple, however, contends that XRP should be classified as a digital currency, not a security.
This classification is crucial, as a ruling against Ripple could set a regulatory precedent for other cryptocurrencies, potentially reshaping the legal environment for the entire crypto sector.
