XRP Hits $3.54, Becomes Third-Largest Crypto Amid Institutional Buying

- XRP reaches $3.54, overtaking Tether (USDT) as the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. - Key legislative actions, institutional adoption, and surging trading volumes drive rising investor confidence. XRP experienced a noteworthy price surge, climbing to $3.54 and surpassing Tether (USDT) to become the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. This growth was fueled by recent regulatory advancements, institutional developments, and intensified trading activity, which have bolstered investor sentiment. On July 18, 2025, Cryptopolitan reported a spike in XRP’s market capitalization, which was fueled by heightened trading volume. On platforms like Coinbase, XRP briefly became the most actively traded asset, with the exchange reporting a 24-hour trading volume of $1.38 billion for the token. Meanwhile, XRP’s total global trading volume rose sharply to $22.5 billion, with South Korea and the United States showing the most significant activity. Legislative clarity has emerged as a key driver behind XRP’s price momentum after the U.S. House of Representatives recently passed the GENIUS Act and the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act. These new laws address longstanding regulatory concerns about digital assets like XRP by introducing clearer guidelines for stablecoin oversight and defining the regulatory scope of agencies like the SEC and CFTC. As a result, this new clarity has eased market uncertainty surrounding XRP’s legal status and driven renewed optimism among investors. Institutional adoption has also played a pivotal role in XRP’s ascent. Ripple’s application for a U.S. banking license and a Federal Reserve master account demonstrates its commitment to integrating with the traditional financial system. In addition, speculation around a potential spot XRP ETF approval in the U.S. has further energized market participants. Corporate entities such as VivoPower and Webus have also announced plans to allocate a collective $421 million toward XRP purchases to diversify their treasuries. Derivatives trading has added further fuel to XRP’s upward trajectory, with daily futures volume exceeding $48.44 billion. Liquidations of short positions also contributed significantly to the price increases, illustrating the asset’s growing appeal to both institutional and retail investors. In its July 18 report, Cryptopolitan analysts emphasized that XRP has emerged as a high-volume, dynamic asset in both traditional and derivative markets. According to market data, XRP traded at $3.389 as of 16:16 UTC on July 18, a 4.221% gain over the past 24 hours, while its trading volume surged by 61.212%.