XRP’s Elegant Tango With Ethereum and Bitcoin’s Woes

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XRP, that sprightly acrobat of the blockchain circus, has pirouetted past Ethereum in the fevered whispers of institutional investors, a feat as improbable as a snowstorm in a desert. This while its ETFs, those gilded chariots of capital, sip from the fountain of inflows, unfazed by the weeping widows of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs. A financial ballet, one might say, where XRP pirouettes to the tune of Wall Street’s pocket watch.

XRP: The Altcoin Whisperer’s Darling

Grayscale, that venerable custodian of crypto’s twilight zone, let slip a secret at XRP Community Day: Rayhaneh Sharif-Askary, its oracle of research, mused that XRP dances cheek to cheek with Bitcoin in the minds of institutions, a position so lofty it makes Ethereum green with envy. Advisors, those modern-day scribes, now field questions about XRP like a bard reciting epic tales-only to find their clients’ eyes glint with the promise of untold riches.

Grayscale, ever the host of lavish soirées, offers an XRP ETF, a vessel for the hopeful and the desperate alike. Since November’s launch, these funds have swelled with inflows, as if the market itself were sipping champagne from a champagne glass. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs and Jane Street, those colossi draped in pinstripe capes, have staked their flags in XRP’s territory, their Q4 filings revealing a love affair with Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, and 21Shares’ funds.

According to SoSoValue, these ETFs now hoard $1.01 billion, a sum that constitutes 1.17% of XRP’s market cap-a treasure chest, albeit modest, in the grand vault of crypto. Even as the market’s downdrafts howl like banshees, XRP’s funds have siphoned $46.69 million in net inflows this month. Bitcoin and Ethereum? They languish in the shadows, their ETFs bleeding red ink, a fate as inevitable as a poet’s unrequited love.

X Finance Bull, that sly archivist of crypto’s chronicles, suggests institutions are playing a game of chess with XRP, positioning pawns ahead of the CLARITY Act’s arrival. Ripple’s Brad Garlinghouse, a man with the patience of a saint and the ambition of a conqueror, predicts the bill will be 80% signed by April-a date as tantalizing as a midnight rendezvous.

XRP: The YTD King of Capital’s Carnival

CoinShares, that meticulous scribe of market lore, reports XRP’s ETFs as the undisputed champions of YTD inflows, amassing $148 million while Bitcoin and Ethereum’s coffers crumble under $1 billion and $458 million in outflows. A financial tragedy, one might call it, if not for the absurdity of Solana trailing behind with a paltry $99 million.

Last week’s numbers? A farce. XRP’s funds glowed with $33.4 million in inflows, while Bitcoin and Ethereum’s ETFs bled $133 million and $85 million respectively. A performance worthy of a Shakespearean villain, if only the villains here were numbers.

XRP’s price, a mere $1.47 at the hour of writing, waltzes upward in the last 24 hours, a fleeting trill in CoinMarketCap’s grand opera. Behold, the image of this crypto ballet:

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2026-02-18 20:51