XRP is making headlines with climbing 20% in just two days and an impressive 47% over the last week. So, what’s fueling this?
A mix of factors, including speculation about SEC Chairman Gary Gensler’s potential resignation, favorable regulatory changes under the incoming Trump administration, and increased whale activity.
Speculation about Gensler’s resignation
One of the biggest drivers behind XRP’s recent price spike is the chatter about Gary Gensler possibly stepping down as chair of the U.S. SEC.
On November 14, Gensler spoke at the Practicing Law Institute’s annual conference, praising the SEC’s work, but some in the crypto community took his speech as a potential farewell, especially with Trump winning the presidential election.
Investors are hopeful that a new administration might appoint a more crypto-friendly SEC chair. Trump has even promised to fire Gary Gensler on day one if he gets the chance!
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse chimed in on X, suggesting that the U.S. is ready to become the crypto capital of the world under Trump’s leadership.
Regulatory changes on the horizon
The anticipated shift in policy with Trump taking office is another key factor boosting XRP’s price. Reports indicate that his administration plans to adopt a friendlier approach to cryptocurrency regulation.
Garlinghouse expressed optimism about this shift, noting that it could lead to clearer rules for the industry.
He acknowledged the patience of XRP supporters during what has been a frustrating journey since the SEC first started targeting Ripple four years ago.
With Gensler potentially out of the picture, many believe that regulatory pressures on XRP could ease up finally.
Increased whale activity
Whale activity, the large-scale investments by major holders has also played a quite important role in XRP’s price surge.
Santiment’s data shows, wallets holding at least one million XRP now hold a total of 45.61 billion tokens, their highest amount since June 2018.
In just two years, these big players have accumulated an additional 3.44 billion XRP, marking an 8.16% increase in their holdings.
This uptick in accumulation suggests that large investors are feeling more confident about XRP’s long-term value, which is always a good sign for any cryptocurrency.
