XRP, the third-largest cryptocurrency by market value, has replaced bitcoin (BTC) as the most traded digital asset on Coinbase (COIN), the Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange considered a proxy for American demand.
Bitcoin retained its position as the most traded crypto asset on Binance, the largest exchange by volume, closed to US investors.
The volume trends are consistent with the recovery in US demand for XRP, which is closely linked to blockchain-based payment network Ripple, as predicted by premium indicator Coinbase a week ago.
Interest in XRP, the biggest gainer after Donald Trump’s election victory in November, increased after Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse met with the president-elect almost two weeks ago. It was also supported by speculation that a spot XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF) would be approved in the United States.
At press time, the XRP/USD pair accounted for 25% of Coinbase’s 24-hour trading volume of $6.86 billion. The BTC/USD pair ranked second, contributing 20%, while ETH/USD took third place, according to data source Coingecko. On Binance, XRP was the second most traded coin.
Since November, the price of the payments-focused cryptocurrency has risen more than 600% to $3.33, the highest since 2017. The valuation has increased by a third this week alone, according to data from CoinDesk and TradingView.
The rally is supported by record open interest in futures and an increase in the number of large holders. Data tracked by TradingView and CoinMetrics shows that the number of unique addresses holding at least $100,000 worth of cryptocurrency has increased to 108,540.
