XRP Price Surges 25% as Headwinds for Ripple Labs Clear Even More

An incoming crypto-friendly regulatory environment for U.S. based companies has renewed optimism for certain tokens, especially XRP.

An upbeat crypto regulatory environment in the U.S. has buoyed certain tokens, with XRP prices surging by 25% in the past 24 hours.

The gains come as Gary Gensler is set to step down in January as chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), following a sustained bullish trade of several weeks.

Most of XRP's gains were seen in the early Asian hours on Friday, amid a broader shift toward crypto-friendly regulation for U.S.-based companies.

The token is closely-related to payments giant Ripple Labs, which has been locked in a legal battle with the SEC since 2020 over allegations that XRP was sold as a security to U.S. investors.

After fully clearing the塵封已久的 court case in 2024, the spotlight returned to XRP, which is among the top cryptocurrencies by market capitalization (at $77 billion).

According to data, the token has risen by 65% in the past seven days and 150% in the past month, with CoinDesk market analysts targeting a short-term price level of $1.40.

Moreover, Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 election has been met with optimism by the crypto community, thanks to his prior pro-crypto statements.

Investors are hoping that his administration will implement policies that support the growth of the crypto industry.

Some traders are also anticipating the launch of an XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the U.S., given the perceived lenient regulatory climate.

Earlier this week, XRP and dogecoin (DOGE) recorded notably higher trading volumes than usual leader bitcoin on South Korean exchanges, indicating strong demand.

Both XRP and USD-denominated open interest are at record highs, with over 2 billion tokens (worth more than $2 billion at current prices) in futures positions betting on continued market volatility.

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