CNBC Crowns XRP Hottest Crypto Trade of 2026 Over BTC and ETH: Here’s Why
Ripple’s XRP token took heart stage on U.S. monetary tv this week after CNBC labeled it the “hottest crypto commerce of the yr,” overtaking each Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) in early 2026 consideration.
The name alerts a transparent shift in market focus, as traders hunt for bigger proportion strikes past the 2 largest cryptocurrencies.
Why XRP Is Beating Bitcoin and Ethereum Right Now
During CNBC’s Power Lunch section, which aired on January 6, host Brian Sullivan set the tone plainly:
“The hottest crypto commerce of the yr isn’t Bitcoin, it’s not Ether, it’s XRP.”
He noted that XRP is already up greater than 20% this yr and has climbed into the highest three cryptocurrencies by market worth, with “large cash behind this commerce.”
CNBC reporter Mackenzie Sigalos defined that the pattern began quietly in late 2025. “During the doldrums of This autumn, you truly noticed rather a lot of folks piling into these XRP ETFs,” she stated, including that this habits contrasted with Bitcoin and ETH ETFs, the place flows are inclined to comply with value extra carefully.
Investors, she famous, seen XRP as “a much less crowded prepare than Bitcoin or Ether,” a wager that paid off within the first buying and selling days of January.
That view strains up with current information, which exhibits XRP rising from beneath $1.85 to only over $2.40 inside days, supported by regular inflows into spot XRP ETFs and a drop in exchange-held balances.
The Ripple token is at present buying and selling round $2.25 after a 24-hour pullback of about 5%, following a robust weekly climb of practically 20%. Over the previous month, XRP has gained roughly 7%, though it stays about 38% beneath its all-time high of $3.65 per CoinGecko.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin is hovering slightly below $92,000, down about 2% on the day and largely flat over the past 30 days. On its half, ETH is holding close to $3,200, with modest weekly good points however weaker long-term momentum.
Bigger Shift in Crypto Markets
In the CNBC present, Sigalos additionally pointed to XRP’s long-standing funds focus whereas grouping it with Solana (SOL) as one of the altcoins drawing renewed curiosity.
“Those are the 2 very talked-about altcoins proper now,” she stated, explaining the enchantment as being all the way down to traders trying elsewhere for bigger proportion good points since Bitcoin has turn into extra established.
She additionally detailed distinct use instances driving the curiosity: XRP for cross-border funds and Solana for its velocity and low value in tokenizing property like cash market funds.
“The GENIUS Act was handed into regulation final yr, so we noticed much more stablecoin issuers,” Sigalos famous, including that these issuers function throughout a number of blockchains. She recognized value as a vital issue, saying,
“Solana is much more cost-effective than transferring cash over the Ethereum blockchain at completely different factors, which is why you’re seeing folks diversify away from the large two.”
On the identical day as the published, information broke that Morgan Stanley had filed to launch its personal Bitcoin and Solana ETFs. Furthermore, Coinbase’s December 2025 integration of Solana decentralized change buying and selling for its 100 million customers was cited as a significant step in increasing entry to that ecosystem.
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