After six months of witnessing lower highs and lower lows amid a market downtrend, XRP has finally broken the bearish structure with a new higher high.

XRP is gradually pushing toward new territories after months of a sustained downtrend. Specifically, following the July 2025 peak of $3.6, XRP slipped into a downward spiral alongside the rest of the crypto market. Notably, XRP recorded four monthly losses out of five, losing 39% of its value during this period.

A recovery attempt that emerged earlier this month faced resistance at $2.41 on Jan. 6, leading to another round of losses. However, market data indicates that this recovery push helped XRP break what appears to have been a series of lower highs and lower lows that played out consistently after the July 2025 peak.

Key Points

• XRP’s price action has remained under pressure following the drop from the $3.6 peak in July 2025.
• Since then, XRP has recorded multiple monthly losses, losing 39% of its value as it records lower highs and lower lows.
• The recovery attempt from earlier this year, which met resistance at $2.41, helped XRP break this structure of lower highs and lower lows.
• Specifically, XRP’s rise to $2.41 on Jan. 6 marked a higher high, indicating that the bearish momentum may be weakening.

XRP Records Series of Lower Highs and Lower Lows

This pattern was identified by Sjuul Follings, founder and CEO of crypto resource AltCryptoGems. Follings suggested that XRP was starting to look better after breaking the bearish structure that followed the pullback from $3.6 in July 2025.

For context, after this pullback, XRP first dropped to a low of $2.96 by Aug. 3 before recovering to $3.2 six days later. However, this $3.2 peak marked a lower high despite representing stern resistance. From here, XRP dropped further to $2.69 on Sept. 1, marking a lower low. The recovery that followed led to $3.07, another lower high.

This pattern of lower highs and lower lows persisted until Q4 2025, when XRP witnessed another lower high of $2.28 in late November and from here collapsed to a lower low of $1.77 by Dec. 19, 2025. Essentially, the bearish structure lasted till the end of the year.

XRP Breaks Bearish Structure

However, the rebound that ensued at the start of 2026 pushed XRP to $2.41, a higher high when compared to the $2.28 high in late November 2025. This marked the first time XRP recorded a higher high on the daily chart in six months, leading to a break of the bearish structure.

While the pullback that emerged following the $2.41 peak has dampened investor sentiment this year, analysts like Follings believe XRP now sits in a better position. In his latest analysis, Follings confirmed this and noted that XRP must now maintain this new trend of higher values to keep the bullish positioning. 

This would mean forming a low higher than the December 2025 floor of $1.77 before rebounding to prices higher than the $2.41 peak of Jan. 6. If this materializes, XRP will have begun forming a series of higher highs and higher lows, a pattern that could set the stage for a sustained recovery.

To maintain the bullish structure, XRP must hold above the $1.8 support identified by Follings in his chart. Meanwhile, the recovery could gain momentum once XRP’s price recovers above the $2.7 pivot, with a full bullish trend emerging above the $3.4 resistance.

A prominent wealth expert argues that XRP’s value goes far beyond price speculation, warning that those betting against the asset are likely to regret it. 

Although XRP plays a clear role in cross-border settlements, critics have often downplayed this utility and dismissed the token as just another speculative play. In response, XRP proponents continue to push back, stressing that its distinct design and real-world use case set it apart.

Key Points 

• Prominent wealth expert Jake Claver argues that XRP’s value extends far beyond price speculation. 
• Critics have frequently downplayed XRP’s role in cross-border settlements, labeling it as speculative. 
• Claver warns that investors betting against XRP may ultimately regret it. 
• Historical trends show that utility consistently outperforms hype.

XRP’s Purpose Extends Beyond Speculation 

Jake Claver, CEO of Digital Ascension Group (DAG), recently reinforced this view in a post on X. In his commentary, Claver emphasized that XRP was deliberately engineered with a specific purpose beyond price speculation. 

He noted that while much of the crypto market has chased scarcity narratives in hopes of becoming digital gold alongside Bitcoin, XRP has taken a different path, focusing instead on solving tangible real-world problems. 

Moreover, Claver pointed to historical market trends, arguing that utility ultimately outperforms hype over the long term. From this perspective, dismissing XRP as just another token overlooks the intentional choices that underpin its architecture. 

Consequently, he cautioned that those who underestimate XRP’s uniqueness may regret it, particularly if they miss the point where function and purpose begin to outweigh speculation. 

“Utility Wins All the Time”

Notably, several members of the XRP community rallied behind Jake Claver’s commentary. One user argued that utility ultimately prevails in the market, stressing that assets with real-world applications tend to outperform speculation-driven tokens over the long term. 

Similarly, another commenter maintained that utility has always been the defining factor in crypto. Despite acknowledging that mass adoption has yet to materialize fully, they emphasized that progress continues steadily. 

Utility has always been the difference. Still a way to go but we are getting closer every day.

— Mr Market (@dogreadsnews) January 11, 2026

XRP Targets Real-World Payment Inefficiencies

Meanwhile, XRP has positioned itself as a digital asset with clear real-world utility. Developers designed the token to reduce inefficiencies in traditional payment systems by enabling fast, low-cost, and scalable value transfers, especially for cross-border transactions. 

As a result, its architecture prioritizes rapid settlement, liquidity efficiency, and interoperability with existing financial infrastructure. In addition, Ripple has driven XRP’s adoption for cross-border payments. Several financial institutions, including SBI Group and Tranglo, already use the token for settlements. 

From Claver’s perspective, this problem-solving capability signals that broader adoption is only a matter of time and could support long-term price appreciation. 

However, skeptics remain unconvinced. Some argue that Ripple, not XRP holders, benefits most from the ecosystem and claim the company could eventually replace XRP with its stablecoin, RLUSD. 

Meanwhile, Ripple executives have repeatedly rejected this view. In fact, CEO Brad Garlinghouse has reaffirmed that XRP remains central to Ripple’s long-term strategy, directly countering speculation that the asset could be sidelined. 

The total value of the tokenized RWA on the XRP Ledger has finally hit the $1 billion milestone amid a rapid expansion since the start of the year. 

While XRP and the broader crypto market have faced a roadblock to the earlier bullish momentum, real-world asset (RWA) tokenization has continued to expand across multiple blockchains, and the XRP Ledger (XRPL) remains a major beneficiary of the growth.

Specifically, data confirms that tokenized RWA on the XRP Ledger has now crossed the $1 billion mark for the first time in history, after starting the year with a total value of $885 million. This indicates that the value of tokenized RWA on the XRP Ledger has grown by nearly $115 million this year, with the Ripple stablecoin (RLUSD) contributing the most to this growth.

Key Points

• Tokenized RWA on the XRP Ledger has hit the $1 million milestone after adding $115 million worth of value in 2026.
• The Ripple stablecoin, RLUSD, contributed the most to this growth, making up more than 90% of the value added this year.
• Today, the value of RWA on the XRPL stands at $1.001 billion, with US treasury debt accounting for $150.2 million and stablecoins making up $395 million.
• Exactly a year ago, the XRPL hosted just $45 million worth of tokenized RWA, indicating that the network has added over $956 million in the past year.

Tokenized RWA on the XRP Ledger Hits $1B

This is according to data provided by RWA.xyz, an industry-standard data aggregator focused on tokenized real-world assets. Notably, the recent $1 billion figure accounts for all RWA value on the XRPL, including distributed and represented assets.

With the XRPL adding $115 million in tokenized value since the start of this year, the RLUSD stablecoin accounts for 90% of this growth, having contributed $104 million. Following this rapid surge, RLUSD market cap on the XRP Ledger has now increased to $338 million, making up 33.7% of the total RWA value on the network.

Contributions from Each Asset Class

Today, the total value of RWA on the XRPL sits exactly at $1.001 billion, including distributed represented assets. For context, distributed assets represent assets that users can hold and transfer on the blockchain for trading and DeFi use, while represented assets stay on the issuing platform and can’t be transferred outside. Notably, represented assets act as internal digital records of ownership, not tradable assets.

Of the $1.001 billion, distributed assets make up $600.4 million, representing a 60% share. These assets include private equity ($55.2 million), U.S. treasury debt ($150.2 million), and stablecoins ($395 million). Interestingly, RLUSD, currently boasting a $338 million market cap on the XRPL, accounts for 85% of all stablecoin value on the network.

Meanwhile, represented assets make up $401.4 million, representing 40% of the $1.001 billion total value on the XRPL. Notably, these assets include commodities ($110.7 million), real estate ($6.9 million), and private credit ($283.8 million). Vert Capital’s tokens, which represent Brazilian private equity, account for $269.8 million worth of private credit.

XRPL RWA Tokenization Recording Rapid Expansion

The recent $1 billion milestone reflects the rapid expansion the XRPL has continued to record in the tokenization scene, which the BlackRock CEO Larry Fink calls “inevitable.” 

For context, exactly a year ago, the XRPL only hosted $45.179 million worth of tokenized RWA. The current figure of $1.001 billion indicates that the blockchain’s RWA value has grown by $956.6 billion over the past year, as it sets itself up to benefit from the growing tokenization narrative. Recall that Bitwise suggested last year that buying XRP was one of the “cleanest” ways to invest in the future of tokenization.

Market data shows that nearly 50% of all XRP wallets currently hold less than 100 XRP, confirming room for further adoption.

According to the XRP wallet distribution metric, exactly 45% of wallets hold between 1 and 100 XRP worth $1.90 to $190. Additionally, those holding 100 to 1,000 XRP represent 22% of the total wallets. This confirms that the XRP market still has room for growth despite being nearly 13 years old.

Key Points

• XRP has traded for nearly 13 years, but most market commentators believe the asset is still early, with room for growth.
• One of the factors driving this argument is the XRP wallet distribution metric, which indicates that about 45% of the 7.53 million XRP wallets hold less than 100 XRP.
• Moreover, those holding between 100 and 1,000 XRP represent 22% of the total, with just 10% managing wallets with 10,000 to 100,000 XRP.

XRP Still Early?

Japanese XRP community member Sekairoboyashi recently shared this data, aligning with suggestions that the XRP market is still early.

Notably, despite being nearly 13 years old, XRP holders believe the crypto asset is still in an early growth phase. Since its launch, XRP has delivered an all-time gain exceeding 32,000%, yet several market commentators argue that its current adoption level leaves room for expansion. 

They believe investors entering the market today may still be setting themselves up relatively early, especially when they compare XRP’s user metrics with those of older and more established cryptocurrencies.

For instance, XRP currently boasts 7.53 million wallets. In contrast, Bitcoin alone has approximately 56.8 million wallets holding between 0 and 1 BTC. This difference shows how much smaller XRP’s holder base remains, even after more than a decade of existence. 

45% of XRP Wallets Hold Less Than 100 XRP

Notably, of the 7.53 million wallets, the report from Sekairoboyashi reveals that a substantial portion of XRP wallets hold relatively small amounts of the asset. 

Specifically, around 45% of all XRP wallets contain between 1 and 100 XRP, making this the largest single group of holders on the network. Meanwhile, about 22% of wallets are estimated to hold between 100 and 1,000 XRP, while another 17% fall within the 1,000 to 10,000 XRP range. 

Interestingly, as the balances increase, the number of wallets continues to decline. Notably, about 10% of XRP wallets reportedly hold between 10,000 and 100,000 XRP. Moving up, roughly 4% of wallets control between 100,000 and 1 million XRP. At the top, wallets holding more than 1 million XRP account for less than 2% of the total. 

Current Holders Will Benefit When Institutions Enter

Sekairoboyashi emphasized that this means large-scale holders, or whales, represent only a small fraction of the overall XRP holder base. He also noted that when these upper tiers are combined, roughly the top 15% of wallets collectively control the majority of the circulating supply.

Now, while a large number of participants hold relatively small balances, owning 10,000 XRP or more already places a wallet within the top 15% of all holders. According to Sekairoboyashi, this shows how rare long-term holders with sizable balances have become over time.

He further suggested that this could become important if institutional players, banks, and even sovereign entities begin using the XRP Ledger at scale. In such a scenario, he believes the greatest benefit would accrue to those who accumulated and held XRP quietly during periods of relatively low adoption.