The market value of Ripple's XRP currency made a qualitative leap, exceeding the $100 billion barrier yesterday, Friday, which is its highest level since January 2018.
With this, XRP has surpassed BNB to become the fifth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, according to CoinGecko data.
The coin is up 18% in 24 hours to $1.8, with weekly gains of 22% and a total increase of 193% since the beginning of the year.
This strong performance is attributed to a number of factors, most notably:
The optimism generated by Donald Trump’s victory in the US elections, which raised hopes for a boom in the cryptocurrency sector in light of his clear support for it.
The resignation of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler also played a major role, with the price of XRP rising by 25% to $1.40 immediately after his future resignation was announced.
All of these developments have prompted investors to expect positive changes in Ripple's legal status, with the possibility of the SEC dismissing or settling the cases filed against it.
In addition, Ripple's continued expansion and increasing institutional adoption of its products, as well as the growing interest from asset managers like Bitwise and Canary Capital to launch XRP-based investment funds, have further fueled the coin's bullish momentum.
Ripple is also expected to get approval to launch its stablecoin RLUSD.
Despite this momentum, technical analysis indicates a possible price correction in the near term, as the currency's Relative Strength Index (RSI) reached 89, indicating that it has reached an overbought state.
Analysts warn that heavy reliance on leveraged trading can lead to significant price volatility.
However, traders are advised to manage risks taking into account the possibility of the upward trend continuing in the medium term especially since the rise has just begun.