The former Ripple CTO couldn't resist poking fun at the coincidence. "It's because I retired," he joked on X . "Next I'll try cutting my hair." The quip landed perfectly. Schwartz had just transitioned to CTO Emeritus after 13 years leading Ripple's technology organization. But while the "Schwartz Effect" made for good memes, the real drivers behind XRP's rally run deeper: record ETF inflows, post-SEC clarity, and improving risk appetite across crypto markets.
XRP ( ), more sensitive to these flows than Bitcoin or Ethereum, fell sharply as leveraged positions unwound. With economists projecting rates could hit 1.0% by September 2026, the macro pressure looks set to persist. Each incremental hike tightens the funding conditions that made crypto speculation cheap. But Japan simultaneously approved crypto tax reform that could override the entire carry trade narrative-slashing rates from 55% to a flat 20% and opening institutional floodgates.
XRP ( ) has held steady near $1.88 as fear spikes to multi-week extremes. Social sentiment turned sharply negative, with analytics platforms like Santiment flagging "extreme fear" across discussions on X and Reddit. For traders studying XRP's historical patterns, the setup feels familiar-past cycles show XRP tends to bottom when pessimism peaks and consolidation exhausts sellers.
The XRP ( ) price history is marked by long periods of quiet accumulation followed by sudden breakouts. For example, XRP spent roughly 18 months in 2015-2016 trading around $0.006 before surging sharply by approximately 6,500% to reach $0.40 between March and May 2017. Similarly, from December 2017 to early January 2018, XRP exploded from about $0.25 to $3.40 -a roughly 1,200% price increase in just six weeks.
Here's why institutions are paying close attention: when all five catalysts land at once, investors will be forced to make decisions. When stablecoin rails go live, ETF pathways expand, macro policy clarifies, and derivatives markets mature all at once, institutions can't wait and watch anymore-they have to act. Large holders are moving now because by the time these catalysts are fully confirmed and visible to everyone, the opportunity to position at current levels will be gone.
One of cryptocurrency's most dramatic price runs came from XRP ( ) in late 2017 and early 2018, when the token surged from roughly $0.25 in December to a peak above $3.30 by January-a 1,200% gain in about six weeks as markets exploded in a broader bull cycle. That rally became part of XRP price history. It reflected a flash of explosive gains that fueled mainstream headlines and turned casual observers into believers.
A recent Gemini XRP poll (December 12-23, 2025) shows a striking consensus: 73% of respondents now predict XRP ( ) will finish 2025 between $1.50 and $2.00. This crowd-driven XRP price prediction for December 2025 implies a very muted year-end for the coin, given XRP's current level around $1.88. Just a few weeks ago, traders were more bullish-about 38% expected XRP to rally to $2.00-$2.50 by December 31, but that figure has since plunged to 28%.
XRP ( ) is testing a critical threshold-the $2 support-and this time, the structure underneath looks completely different. During past selloffs, extreme fear drove retail panic-selling and XRP collapsed below key support levels. Now, extreme fear readings have hit October 2025 lows-when the market saw heavy liquidations-but the XRP $2 support refuses to break. The reason the $2 support holds is that institutional demand replaced retail sellers.
XRP ( ) is testing a make-or-break support level as traders debate whether $1.90 holds or the price drops toward $1.80. After weeks of selling pressure and thin liquidity, the XRP price has found temporary footing at the $1.90 level, which has stopped previous declines from getting worse. At the same time, the TD Sequential buy signal has flashed, suggesting that the pressure from sellers may be running out of steam.
XRP's Rollercoaster Ride to a New Regulatory Dawn XRPRipple 's native token, is built for fast, low-cost cross-border payments, settling in 3-5 seconds - outpacing traditional SWIFT systems. With over 200 global financial institutions, XRP aims to expand its role in global cross-border payments, a market projected to reach tens of billions of dollars by 2025. Its path, however, faced headwinds from a four-year SEC lawsuit alleging unregistered securities sales.
RI Mining, a global leader in cloud mining, has officially unveiled its new Green XRP Cloud Mining Contract. Powered by clean energy, this innovative product addresses the high energy consumption of traditional mining while delivering stable daily returns of up to $18,000. The launch sets a new benchmark for combining blockchain technology with sustainable finance, opening the door to digital wealth for investors worldwide.