XRP Becomes Third Largest Crypto After 21% Surge, Can it Overtake ETH?

XRP has reclaimed its spot as the third-largest crypto by market cap after briefly slipping to fourth. Now trading at $2.61, XRP’s market cap has surged to nearly $153 billion, once again pushing it ahead of Tether.

The recent US-China deal talks have lifted the market sentiment, with XRP rising 7-12% in the last three days. 

What’s Driving the Surge?

XRP has upheld the bullish trend as crypto markets see continued momentum. The rally, now in its second week of gains, is driven by a $1 billion surge in Open Interest.

XRP futures open interest rose from $2.42 billion to $3.42 billion in just a week, according to data from Glassnode. This $1 billion increase shows more money is flowing into XRP and more traders are betting on big price moves ahead. 

Another factor behind XRP’s rally is the growth in XRP wallets, with nearly 6.5 million non-empty wallets, the highest in its 12-year history. Over 638,000 new wallets were added in early 2025, which shows strong interest, both retail and institutional.

XRP’s RSI remains neutral, and most moving averages are flashing buy signals. The MACD also shows bullish momentum. 

Will XRP Outperform Ethereum?

According to Standard Chartered, XRP will overtake Ethereum in market cap by 2028, driven by its core utility as a platform for cross-border and cross-currency payments. Analyst Geoffrey Kendrick sees XRP as a top performer alongside Bitcoin and Avalanche, while Ethereum is viewed as an underperformer in the digital asset space. 

The XRP ETF has also seen five consecutive weeks of inflows, with $14 million added this week, up from $10 million last week. There’s also growing speculation that the SEC will approve XRP ETFs, which could further boost demand. Analysts believe XRP ETF inflows could hit $8 billion in its first year, surpassing Ethereum’s ETF performance. 

Another analyst, the Modern Investor, recently shared that if XRP’s price doubles to $5.20, it could overtake Ethereum and become the second-largest crypto. Attorney John Deaton also believes that XRP has more appeal to Wall Street than they are willing to admit, and it could flip Ethereum by the end of this year.

However, Ethereum has also taken pace recently, nearing the $2,700 mark. It has gained nearly 50% in the past two weeks, and it remains to be seen if XRP will be able to leave Ether behind.