XRP Open Interest Hits New All-Time High Above $4 Billion Amid RLUSD Launch

The price of XRP has moved up more than 150% over the last 30-day period from around $1.05 to now stand at $2.62, and while its open interest has exploded along with its price, a new $4 billion all-time high was seen only after the launch of Ripple’s RLUSD.

The coin has surged more than 350% since mid-November, taking advantage of a wider cryptocurrency market rally amid an explosion of interest in the sector after Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump won the U.S elections.

Growing interest in XRP has seen open interest on the cryptocurrency – referring to the amount of outstanding futures and options contracts not yet settled – hit a new high above $4 billion, according to CoinGlass data.

An increase in open interest often indicates that new money is entering the market, leading to greater demand and liquidity for the asset, which in this case is XRP.  Given the cryptocurrency’s ongoing price rise, the surge in open interest could suggest new buyers are entering the market, adding to its bullish momentum.

The rise came amid the launch of Ripple’s new U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin Ripple USD (RLUSD). The stablecoin was approved by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) earlier this month, and is now available on various major exchanges.

XRP’s Open Interest Rises as Spot ETF Interest Grows

The explosion of interest surrounding XRP also came amid expected greater regulatory clarity, which led some to believe that a spot exchange-traded fund offering exposure to the coin could soon be approved.

Several companies, including WisdomTree, 21Shares, Bitwise, and Canary Capital have already filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to list a spot XRP ETF in the country.

These filings represent growing interest in XRP as an investable asset for institutions that are slowly entering the cryptocurrency space and have historically mostly gained exposure to the flagship cryptocurrency Bitcoin.