During CNBC’s Power Lunch phase, the community singled out XRP as the hottest cryptocurrency of the yr, putting it forward of Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Specifically, CNBC anchor Brian Sullivan highlighted XRP’s robust begin to the yr, noting that it has already climbed greater than 20%. This transfer outperforms a number of main cryptocurrencies, together with Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Sullivan defined that XRP has moved as much as grow to be the third-largest cryptocurrency by market cap. Amid this, he declared that the hottest crypto commerce of the yr is neither Bitcoin nor Ethereum, however XRP.
XRP Outperforms Bitcoin and Ethereum
Notably, XRP’s rise marks a pointy reversal from the bearish stress it confronted final month. Entering 2026 with robust momentum, the token opened the yr at $1.84 and rapidly posted constant positive aspects. This upward trend pushed XRP to a year-to-date excessive of $2.41, representing a 30.97% surge.
By comparability, Bitcoin and Ethereum began the yr at $87,508 and $2,967, respectively, and have to date reached highs of $94,762 and $3,303. These strikes translate to positive aspects of 8.28% for Bitcoin and 11.32% for Ethereum. The disparity reinforces XRP’s place as the standout performer to date this yr amongst large-cap property.
Meanwhile, XRP has surrendered some positive aspects amid the market pullback and now trades at $2.25. Yet, it stays up 22.28% year-to-date.
Factors Fueling XRP Rally
Commenting on the rally, CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos attributed XRP’s robust efficiency to a mixture of strategic investor positioning, market rotation, and shifting blockchain priorities.
According to Sigalos, traders quietly collected XRP all through This autumn 2025, at the same time as the crypto market remained largely stagnant. Unlike spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, whose inflows and outflows typically mirror worth actions, XRP ETFs continued to draw consumers throughout the downturn. As a outcome, these funds recorded cumulative web inflows of $1 billion, with zero outflows, in the first month of going dwell.
Moreover, Sigalos prompt that many traders considered XRP as a much less crowded commerce with higher upside potential than Bitcoin or Ethereum. That technique, she famous, rapidly paid off in the first days of January.
Beyond positioning, she additionally pointed to a shift in investor curiosity towards altcoins with clearer or faster-growing use instances. While Bitcoin and Ethereum at the moment are effectively understood and more and more mainstream, XRP and Solana are rising as the “next big thing” in the crypto market.
In explicit, Sigalos emphasised that XRP’s long-standing position in cross-border funds stays central to its enchantment.
Further, she highlighted XRP’s velocity and price effectivity as key benefits that proceed to draw real-world monetary functions. In her view, these components recommend that capital is rotating towards property and blockchains positioned for the subsequent section of monetary innovation—a shift now mirrored in XRP’s spectacular begin to the yr.
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