With Ripple boosting optimism on pro-crypto policies, XRP is the fourth largest cryptocurrency.
As investors’ trust is restored by regulatory hope and legal certainty, XRP has risen to become the fourth-largest cryptocurrency, surpassing Solana.
XRP Rises Above Solana to Reclaim a Leading Crypto Position
After a remarkable surge in value in November, XRP has overtaken Solana (SOL) as the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. At the time of writing, XRP’s market value was above $122 billion, which is more than Solana’s $113 billion.
Prior to Ripple Labs’ December 2020 lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which claimed that XRP was an unregistered security, XRP was the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, after Ethereum and Bitcoin. Significant investor hesitancy, delistings on prominent exchanges, and a precipitous drop in XRP’s value were all consequences of the case. For a long time, XRP was in seventh place in the market capitalization after major cryptocurrency trading platforms like Coinbase stopped trading it.
The regulatory ambiguity around XRP was largely resolved in July 2023 by a court ruling that determined the token is not a securities in certain situations. This choice caused XRP’s value to rise sharply and its market capitalization to rise as well.
Positive market sentiment for XRP has been reinforced by Donald Trump’s reelection and SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s impending resignation. The price of XRP skyrocketed after Trump was elected because investors expected the new administration to provide a more benevolent regulatory environment for digital assets. On January 20, 2025, which also happens to be Trump’s inauguration, Gensler, who is well-known for his “regulation by enforcement” strategy for overseeing the cryptocurrency industry, will step down. A more crypto-friendly SEC Chair may be appointed as a result of his resignation, according to speculation, which might lessen regulatory pressure on XRP and other cryptocurrencies.
Brad Garlinghouse, the CEO of Ripple, has also commended Trump for appointing Scott Bessent as Treasury Secretary, calling him the “most pro-innovation, pro-crypto Treasury Secretary” to date. These legal reforms, along with predictions that the SEC could abandon its action against Ripple, have strengthened investor optimism. The market recovery of XRP is indicative of broader expectations for a less regulated environment for digital assets in the years to come. SOL, which is currently trading at $236.21, has had a minor decline.