XRP tops bitcoin’s gains on Clarity Act momentum, though a true rally still depends on lawmakers

XRP rallied after U.S. lawmakers advanced a key crypto market-structure bill, boosting expectations that regulatory clarity could unlock fresh institutional demand.

The token rose 5% after the Senate Banking Committee approved the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act in a 15–9 vote on Thursday, moving one of the industry’s most closely watched bills closer to a full Senate showdown.

XRP climbed above $1.50 following the decision, gaining 5% over 24 hours and 7.6% on the week. The move outpaced bitcoin and ether, both of which have posted weekly gains of less than 3%.

The outsized response highlights XRP’s sensitivity to U.S. regulation. Since the SEC’s 2020 lawsuit against Ripple, the asset has faced years of trading disruptions, institutional hesitation, and lingering uncertainty around its legal status. Although a 2023 court ruling clarified that secondary-market XRP trades are not securities transactions, markets have continued to look for durable federal legislation.

The CLARITY Act is designed to provide that framework, outlining clearer rules for custody, trading, market-making, and ETF participation—areas seen as critical for large institutional allocators.

Still, the path to law remains uncertain. The bill must be reconciled with a separate Senate Agriculture Committee version, pass a full Senate vote, clear the House, and be signed by the president. While Senator Cynthia Lummis has pointed to broad agreement on much of the proposal, opposition from Senator Elizabeth Warren signals potential friction ahead. The Memorial Day recess adds a near-term timeline to the process.

Beyond the policy narrative, XRP’s momentum is being supported by strengthening fundamentals tied to Ripple and the broader XRP Ledger ecosystem.

The network has seen a notable uptick in activity, particularly in tokenization. Tokenized real-world assets on the XRP Ledger have surpassed $3 billion, positioning it as a leading platform outside Ethereum for institutional-grade token issuance.

Recent pilots further underscore that direction. A collaboration involving Ripple, JPMorgan, Mastercard, and Ondo Finance processed a tokenized U.S. Treasury redemption in under five seconds, demonstrating the network’s ability to integrate with traditional financial infrastructure.

Meanwhile, XRP-linked DeFi activity continues to expand, with more than $560 million in total value locked across ecosystems such as Flare and Doppler Finance.

Institutional interest is also showing up in flows. U.S.-listed spot XRP ETFs recorded $25.8 million in net inflows earlier this week—their strongest daily intake since January—bringing total inflows to $1.35 billion. The surge followed Ripple’s $200 million debt raise for its Prime brokerage unit and continued progress in tokenization initiatives.

Even with the recent gains, XRP remains below its 2025 highs, with the $1.50 level acting as a key technical threshold.

For now, the committee vote has provided a catalyst. But for a sustained breakout, markets are still looking to Washington—where full regulatory clarity remains the decisive factor

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