XRP is up 92% in the last seven days, and meme coins on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) network are experiencing even larger percentage gains as the ecosystem attracts users from other blockchains.
The charge is led by an 18-month-old meme coin, ARMY—a reference to the so-called XRP Army of enthusiastic investors and supporters—which jumped from less than a $1 million market cap on November 26 to more than $90 million on Sunday, though it has since dipped to about $47 million as of this writing.
The massive move has marked significant gains for early ARMY traders, one of which has recognized more than $100,000 in profit with $400,000 in unrealized gains, from a mere $478 purchase, just 21 days ago according to DEX Screener.
Other tokens, like BEAR and MAG have jumped by multiples as well, rising to join ARMY in the top 10 of XRP Ledger meme coins by market cap, each with a market cap just below $30 million as of this writing.
The substantial gains from traders have attracted the attention of crypto personalities in other major crypto ecosystems like Solana and Ethereum, with some users offering tutorials to help the crowd get started.
Such posts have pointed users to trading tools like the Telegram-based trading bot FirstLedger, XRP wallet Xaman, and Magnetic X, a decentralized exchange (DEX) on XRPL.
Though the ecosystem and its tools are gaining greater adoption, volume on Ripple meme coins still pales in comparison to that of meme coins trading on other blockchains. For example, ARMY traded nearly $10 million in the last 24 hours, while 34 tokens each accomplished that feat on Solana, according to DEX Screener.
The nascency of meme coin trading infrastructure on the XRP Ledger, along with skepticism about the staying power of a potentially overheated ecosystem, has led others to take a stand against the trade.
“I refuse to trade Ripple meme coins,” said pseudonymous crypto personality Noodles on X. “It’s too much even for a degen like me.”
The Ripple-linked XRP flipped Tether to become the third-largest cryptocurrency by market cap over the weekend. The move coincides with speculation about XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and expectations of increased regulatory clarity.
Edited by Andrew Hayward
