Ripple Expands into Stablecoins and DeFi with Smart Contracts, But XRP Price Remains Steady at $0.50
Ripple, the company behind XRP, has recently made significant announcements about its advancements.
One of the latest developmentsis Ripple'sentry into the stablecoin market by launching the US-pegged token RLUSD. Ripple also announced plans to add smart contracts to the XRP Ledger (XRPL).
Despite these significant updates, XRP's price has stayed relatively unchanged, hovering around $0.50. This lack of price movement has raised questions about Ripple's influence on XRP's value and its status as a security.
Ripple's Major Announcements and XRP's Lack of ResponseRipple has been active lately, making several business moves. One is to make the XRP ecosystem more DeFi-friendly by adding smart contracts to the XRPL.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse threw in more light on these developments during Korea Blockchain Week in Seoul. Garlinghouse said the company would launch RLUSD in weeks, not months.
Apex round 2? @bgarlinghouse and @joelkatz take the stage at #XRPLZone Korea to discuss everything from the early days of building the XRP Ledger to how new programmability can help XRPL builders customize their applications, and upcoming plans for the official RLUSD launch! pic.twitter.com/snjMdS3M7y
- RippleX (@RippleXDev) September 4, 2024
However, despite these exciting developments, XRP's price has shown little movement.
Attorney Bill Morgan shared his observation on this development earlier today. He questions why these significant milestones have not impacted XRP's priceand suggests that Ripple's actions may not beenough to significantly influence XRP's value.
This skepticism ties into Ripple's ongoing legal battle with the SEC, which alleged that XRP is a security based on investor profit expectations.
Morgan's remarks also address Ripple's legal challenges. The SEC has argued that XRP is a security because investors expect profits from Ripple's efforts.
He noted, In terms of the Howey test, not only would I question whether an investor in XRP could possibly have a reasonable expectation of profits holding XRP from Ripple's efforts after the last several years, but I would question if such an expectation is rational."
Morgan points out that, rather than Ripple's efforts, XRP's price movements are influenced by broader market trends and the decentralized nature of the XRPL.
In another tweet, Morgan expanded his observations. He said XRP's decentralized nature and global ecosystem mean that factors beyond Ripple's control drive its price.
In his words, The efforts of many over a long period of time and many external factors will impact on the long-term price action of XRP."
This challenges the SEC's argument that XRP holders rely on Ripple's efforts for profit.
Increase in Ripple XRP Whale Activity Signals Potential Market MoveDespite the largely stagnant price movement, XRP whales seem pretty active. Whale Alert recently detected a massive transfer of 105,481,561 XRP valued at $58,216,178 between two unknown wallets.
- Whale Alert (@whale_alert) September 5, 2024
In addition, two other large transfers involving 20,600,000 XRP and 30,360,000 XRP, worth over $28 million, were recorded in the past 24 hours. Notably, both were deposited into major exchanges, Bitso and Bitstamp.
The spike in whale activity could indicate a looming market shift for XRP. Significant whale transactions often hint at upcoming price movements since they involve large asset volumes.
For XRP holders, this increased whale activity could be a sign of potential bullish movements. If whale actions lead to higher demand or further institutional involvement, XRP's price could rise.
XRP trades at $0.55, down 1.46% over the past 24 hours. It has a market cap of $30.94 billion. However, it is above its support at $0.54, keeping the price from dropping further. So, there's hope for a recovery soon.
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