While bullish commentators celebrate five announcements spanning custody, brokerage and settlement, some community members are questioning forecasts that appear increasingly disconnected from the token’s performance.
At the time of reporting, XRP is trading at around $1.31, down from $1.50 on Oct. 6 — a decline of roughly 13%.
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The latest debate has gone into hyperdrive after a post from famed commentator Crypto Captain declared XRP was “going to hit $210 before end of year.”
Fellow commentator John Squire challenged the prediction, despite making it clear he was an XRP supporter.
“I love XRP, but we’re getting completely carried away with these predictions.”
He added:
“At this point, even $10 would feel like a miracle.”
Commentator John Squire spoke out against the wild prediction | Source: X (@TheCryptoSquire)
Replies to the $210 call reflected similar skepticism.
“We’d all accept $2.10 at this point,” wrote one X user.
Another account responded: “You mean $2.10.”
Five Ripple Announcements, but a Falling XRP Price
That skepticism contrasts with the mass enthusiasm surrounding Ripple’s recent institutional expansion.
In an X post, another popular commentator, Pumpious, grouped five recent announcements into an argument that Ripple was assembling a broader financial infrastructure business.
“These aren’t five unrelated announcements. They are five pieces of a much larger financial infrastructure strategy.”
The developments cover several different services and stages of implementation:
Oct. 6 — Brevan Howard: Ripple announced that Ripple Prime would provide brokerage, clearing and financing services across multiple asset classes to funds managed by the approximately $35 billion investment group.
Oct. 12 — Standard Chartered: The bank launched institutional custody for RLUSD issued on the XRP Ledger.
Oct. 14 — DriveWealth: The brokerage infrastructure provider announced plans to integrate RLUSD on the XRP Ledger for settlement in Europe, with a subsequent US expansion planned.
Oct. 15 — Ripple Prime: Ripple launched institutional access to perpetual swaps covering more than 100 reference markets, with Virtu among the participating clients.
“Individually, they look like ordinary business developments. Connect the dots, however, and something much bigger starts to emerge,” Pumpious wrote.
Despite the announcements, XRP’s roughly 13% decline since Oct. 6 highlights that Ripple is winning institutional business, but its token isn’t benefiting.
This is because the developments do not all create the same demand for XRP.
Regardless of the hype from commentators, Standard Chartered’s custody service focuses on RLUSD, while DriveWealth’s planned settlement integration also centers on the stablecoin.
Institutions using those services are not necessarily buying substantial amounts of XRP.
Likewise, Brevan Howard’s agreement covers brokerage and financing — its $35 billion in assets under management does not represent money committed to XRP.
Even when activity does occur on the XRP Ledger, the value transferred does not translate into buying pressure for XRP.
Standard transactions typically require a minimum fee of just 0.00001 XRP, meaning greater stablecoin usage usually requires relatively modest demand for the native token to pay fees.
Where Does XRP Fit Into Ripple’s Growth?
The central question for holders now is how Ripple’s commercial success can eventually translate into demand for XRP itself.
Custody for RLUSD gives institutions another way to hold Ripple’s stablecoin, and using RLUSD as collateral also gives the stablecoin another role in institutional trading.
But neither function requires clients to hold significant amounts of XRP.
A stronger link would emerge if institutions actually used XRP itself to move value between currencies and provide trading liquidity.
The scale of that activity, for example, how many XRP participants needed to be retained, would matter far more than the number of partnerships announced.
That means holders need to focus on actual XRP transaction volumes and institutional balances if they want to see genuine demand catalysts.
However, the recent price decline does not prove Ripple’s expansion will never benefit XRP — in fact, the more partnerships they bag, the better.
But no matter how many announcements are made, a direct route to the extraordinary valuations promoted online remains completely delusional.
Disclaimer:
The information provided in this article is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be, nor should it be construed as, financial advice. We do not make any warranties regarding the completeness, reliability, or accuracy of this information. All investments involve risk, and past performance does not guarantee future results. We recommend consulting a financial advisor before making any investment decisions.
Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
