XRP climbed back above the $100 billion market capitalization mark on September 23, 2026, as the price rallied nearly 4% over the previous 24 hours and reached $1.6, a level not seen since February.

One of the stronger performers among major cryptocurrencies, XRP significantly outperformed Bitcoin (BTC), which gained 0.8% over the same period. Trading volume also rose, with approximately $7.69 billion worth of XRP changing hands over the past 24 hours. 

XRP whale and network activity skyrockets

The rally appears to be driven primarily by whale activity. Namely, approximately 1,900 transactions worth more than $100,000 were recorded during the move, representing the strongest level of high-value transaction activity in roughly a month, according to a Santiment Intelligence DATA report.

Network growth has also accelerated, with 3,647 new wallets created during the period, with the same data also mentioning that tokenized assets and RLUSD balances on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) reached roughly $4.26 billion.

Institutional access to XRP is also expanding. Notably, Bitwise submitted an updated XRP ETF registration to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on September 18, adding to the growing number of exchange-traded products providing investors with exposure to the cryptocurrency.