XRP Ledger activity is hitting records, but why are xrp prices down 62% from peak

The XRP Ledger is experiencing a surge in activity, with daily successful payments hitting a 12-month high of over 2.7 million. This increase, up from roughly 1 million in late 2025, is a sign of the growing usage of the network. The ledger is processing between 2 and 2.8 million transactions per day at a rate of 20 to 26 transactions per second.

Automated market maker pools have also seen significant growth, with nearly 27,000 active pools supporting over 16,000 unique tokens. The tokenized real-world asset value on the ledger has climbed to $461 million, a 35% increase in the past 30 days. Additionally, stablecoin transfer volume over the same period has reached $1.19 billion.

Despite the increased network activity, XRP is currently trading at $1.37, down 26% year-to-date and 62% below its late-2025 high of $3.65. This discrepancy between network activity and token value raises questions about the market’s response to the ledger’s growth.

The standard crypto thesis suggests that network activity drives token value, leading to an increase in demand for the native asset. However, XRP seems to be breaking this pattern, as all metrics point to increased utility but the price remains low.

One possible explanation for this discrepancy is that the growing activity on the XRPL is driven by stablecoins and tokenized assets that flow through XRP as a bridge currency. While this boosts network usage, it may not create sustained demand for the token itself. This results in increased activity without a corresponding increase in scarcity or token value.

The DeFi numbers on XRPL further highlight this issue, with total value locked at $47.54 million, a fraction of the chain’s $84 billion market cap. This disparity suggests that the market cap is driven more by speculative positioning than by actual on-chain activity.

However, there are positive signs in the RWA sector, with $461 million in distributed asset value and $1.5 billion in represented asset value. This puts XRPL ahead of other chains in specific tokenization categories, indicating potential for growth in the future.

Overall, while XRP is currently facing challenges in aligning network activity with token value, there are opportunities for growth in the RWA sector. With historical data suggesting a positive return for XRP in March and the potential for a relief bounce in price, there is optimism for the token’s future performance.