XRP Soars While BTC, ETH, SOL Plunge: A Tale of Digital Woes and Triumphs

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In the first quarter of 2025, XRP’s market capitalization grew by 1.9%, reaching $121.6 billion, while the combined market cap of bitcoin, ethereum, and solana fell by 22%. All network metrics for XRP improved for the second consecutive quarter, with average daily active addresses increasing by 142% to 134,600. 📈💰

XRP Metrics Improve for Second Consecutive Quarter

XRP’s market capitalization remained nearly flat in the first quarter of 2025, growing by just 1.9%, according to the latest Messari XRP Ledger Q1 2025 report. However, it still outperformed the combined market cap of bitcoin ( BTC), ethereum ( ETH), and solana ( SOL), which declined by 22% quarter over quarter (QoQ). 🤷‍♂️

With this marginal increase, XRP’s market cap rose to $121.6 billion, maintaining its position as the fourth-largest digital asset. For context, XRP’s market capitalization at the end of Q1 2024 stood at $34.6 billion. 📊

Despite its modest market cap growth, XRP saw all measured network metrics improve for the second consecutive quarter. Among the most notable, average daily active addresses surged by 142% QoQ to 134,600, indicating an increase in both new and existing users, according to Messari. Total new addresses grew 12% to 568,300, marking a 210% year-over-year (YoY) increase from 183,200 in Q1 2024. 🚀

Meanwhile, active receiver addresses, which provide insight into network demand and adoption, continued their upward trajectory, growing 168% from 47,700 to 127,800. By contrast, average daily senders increased by just 14.5%, from 30,000 to 34,300. Messari suggests this discrepancy may indicate that more previously inactive wallets received tokens than there were senders distributing them. 🤔

Key Factors Driving XRP’s Growth

Several factors helped propel XRP Ledger’s network metrics, including a social media post by U.S. President Donald Trump hinting at the possible inclusion of XRP in the Crypto Strategic Reserve. Additionally, the proposed settlement between the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple is thought to have played a key role in supporting network growth during the quarter. 🤝

According to Messari, Ripple’s USD-pegged stablecoin RLUSD, launched Dec. 17, 2024, closed the quarter with a combined market cap of $244.2 million across XRPL and Ethereum. While this figure remains small compared to USDT and USDC, its listing on platforms such as Bitstamp and Moonpay suggests RLUSD may be on course to capture market share from more established stablecoins. 💰

The report highlights multiple proposed amendments aimed at enabling regulatorily compliant institutions to adopt decentralized finance (DeFi) use cases on XRPL. As these amendments take effect, XRP Ledger will see further growth in Q2, driven by institutional adoption, strategic partnerships, and acquisitions. 🤝💼

Beyond Q2, the upcoming amendment enabling smart escrows in Q3 and the full smart contract devnet amendment in Q4 are expected to help XRP sustain its momentum beyond 2025. 🌟

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2025-05-22 08:00