XRP price’s potential 650x surge – Examining if $20 is altcoin’s next target

• XRP would hit the $20 mark by 2026 amidst ongoing legal issues with the SEC.
• Analysis suggested continued downward price pressure, which metrics show increased interest.

Ripple [XRP], a leading cryptocurrency, has faced significant challenges due to an ongoing lawsuit with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

So far, the asset has experienced a drastic 84.7% decline from its all-time high of $3.40 in 2018 and has yet to recover a fraction of its peak value.

This consistent drop in price has extended: Over the past 30 days, XRP’s value has dropped nearly 20%.

Although there was a minor uptick last week, the cryptocurrency has started to lose those gains, currently showing a 2.3% decrease over the past 24 hours.

However, despite the bearish pressure, an analyst has predicted that XRP has a bright future.

A bullish case for XRP

Armando Pantoja, a noted crypto analyst, remains optimistic about XRP’s potential, estimating its value to reach between $8 and $20 by 2026.

This projection implies a dramatic increase of up to 3,557.6% from its current levels.

Pantoja cites reasons why this surge could be possible, citing the 2017 bull run, where XRP surged over 650 times to its peak, as a “Historical Precedent Powerhouse” for such growth.

Institutional adoption is a strong driver for XRP’s future price. So far, Ripple, the company behind XRP, has seen significant integration into major financial institutions like Bank of America and Royal Bank of Canada. 

Additionally, Ripple’s recent partnership with HashKey DX to introduce XRP Ledger-based solutions in Japan, and collaboration with SBI Ripple Asia, could propel XRP’s price upward.

Despite these adoptions, movement is still being made to accelerate further adoptions.

For instance, RippleX, Ripple’s development arm, has introduced important upgrades to the XRP Ledger (XRPL), such as the XLS-68d specification. 

This enhancement allows platforms to cover transaction fees for others without distributing free XRP, simplifying the onboarding process.

These developments are vital for broadening XRP’s appeal and utility in the digital economy.

In addition to institutional adoption, Pantoja highlights the influence of market trends and the increasing utility of financial services.

He forecasts that XRP will soon achieve legal clarity and see a significant expansion in partnerships.

Regarding the legal developments with Ripple and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), tensions escalated in March when the SEC sought a substantial $2 billion fine against Ripple for purported violations related to institutional sales of XRP.

Ripple has refuted these allegations, with Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty presenting the firm’s detailed rebuttal last week. 

Ripple’s defense challenges the SEC’s assertions and suggests a much lower fine, ideally below $10 million.

Reports have it that the US SEC has filed its final reply to the fine opposition, however, the documents are under seal and yet to be inaccessible to the public.

As the lawsuit approaches its concluding stages, the crypto community is keenly watching to see the outcome and whether XRP can surpass its previous highs and potentially soar into double digits.

XRP’s possible short-term move

Meanwhile, Technical analysis indicates that XRP may continue to face downward pressure in the near term.

The asset has consistently broken its structure on the daily and 4-hour charts, recently capturing liquidity and now targeting the swing low near $0.48.

Source: TradingView

This bearish short-term outlook is reinforced by a recent report from AMBCrypto, which noted that the Chaikin Money Flow for XRP was at zero, indicating no significant inflow of capital into the market.

Realistic or not, here’s XRP’s market cap in BTC terms

However, despite these bearish indicators, data from Santiment shows an increase in metrics such as social dominance, total holders, and active addresses for XRP.

This suggests that many in the community remain optimistic and confident about the asset’s future.

Source: Santiment