XRP Skyrockets 11% in the Last 24 Hours, Leading to a Broader Crypto Market Rally

The token reached a six-year high to reclaim its position as the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.

XRP price skyrocketed 11% in the last 24 hours, spearheading a broader crypto market rally as bitcoin briefly breached the $100,000 barrier.

The token surged to a six-year high, reclaiming its place as the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, surpassing Tether’s USDT and even exceeding the market value of asset management giant BlackRock.

During Wednesday’s early U.S. trading session, XRP peaked at $3 for the first time since January 2018, before pulling back slightly to trade at around $2.95.

The rally comes amid bullish sentiment fueled by U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation data and optimism about crypto-friendly policies under the incoming administration. Ripple’s legal battle with the SEC over XRP’s status as a security has also brought attention to the asset, especially with anticipation of regulatory developments.

XRP has been on a tear, surging 488% since Donald Trump’s election victory. Now firmly in third place behind Bitcoin and Ethereum’s Ether, the token’s comeback is powered by Ripple’s expanding alliances, the rollout of its RLUSD stablecoin, and chatter about a spot XRP ETF. Adding to the optimism, Ripple President Monica Long hinted that ETF approvals might accelerate under the new administration.

Large investors also played a significant role in XRP’s rally, according to data. Analytics firm Santiment highlighted that addresses holding 1 million to 10 million XRP have been accumulating the asset heavily. These addresses have added 1.4 billion XRP, or nearly $3.8 billion worth of the token, to their holdings since mid-November.

The accumulation continued as prices consolidated after early December highs, providing additional momentum for the rally. Notably, traders and analysts are optimistic about XRP’s trajectory, with the next major milestone being its all-time high of $3.40, reached in January 2018. Adjusted for inflation, XRP would need to exceed $4.24 to set a new record, according to Alex Thorn, Galaxy Digital’s head of research.

In another interesting development, Google Trends data showed that XRP recently surpassed Bitcoin in search interest. This marks the third time in the past year that XRP led Bitcoin in global search volumes.

The market now awaits to see if XRP can break its all-time high, and if the rally continues, it could even challenge Ethereum’s position as the second-largest cryptocurrency.