XRP, once overshadowed by courtroom battles, has definitively stepped into a new era, marking a significant re-evaluation of its market position and utility. This dramatic resurgence has culminated in a major milestone: surpassing Binance Coin (BNB) to secure its place as the fourth-largest cryptocurrency, signaling a powerful shift in the broader crypto landscape.
Institutional Demand Drives Unprecedented Growth
The primary catalyst behind XRP's recent decoupling from the wider altcoin market is a substantial and sustained surge in institutional appetite. According to SoSoValue data, Ripple [XRP] spot ETFs alone recorded a net inflow of $13.6 million in just 24 hours. This impressive single-day boost has pushed cumulative net inflows to a staggering $1.18 billion, with total net assets now valued at $1.37 billion, illustrating a clear institutional preference for regulated, ETF-backed assets. While Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs also saw significant inflows, XRP's relative growth signifies a fundamental re-shifting of market attention and liquidity.
Market Momentum and Structural Tightening
This flood of capital has had an immediate and tangible impact on XRP's price action, propelling it to a 3.84% surge in 24 hours to reach $2.07. Unlike previous speculative rallies, this ascent is underpinned by robust technical health, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) firmly in the bull zone and a classic bullish crossover on the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) line. In stark contrast, BNB experienced a 1.48% drop during the same period. Furthermore, on-chain data from Glassnode reveals a massive structural tightening: XRP balances on centralized exchanges have plummeted to their lowest levels since 2018, representing a 57% decline from late 2025 peaks. This decreasing supply, coupled with accelerating demand through ETF speculation and the expanding Ripple payments ecosystem, positions XRP at a potentially decade-defining inflection point.
