Crypto pundit SMQKE has shared a document highlighting why XRP’s utility will drive price appreciation in the new year. This follows a debate sparked by another pundit, Lewis Jackson, who argued that the altcoin’s payment utility doesn’t translate to higher prices.
How XRP’s Utility Will Drive Future Price Appreciation
In an X post, SMQKE shared a document that highlighted XRP’s utility through Ripple’s payment system. In line with this, he noted that this is further evidence that the token’s utility will drive future price appreciation. The pundit further remarked that XRP is designed to operate within the global payment infrastructure, a move that could widely boost its adoption.
SMQKE also noted that Ripple integrates with existing systems to improve speed, cost, and settlement efficiency. As such, as financial institutions adopt the XRP Ledger (XRPL), the pundit stated that XRP will be used directly in payment flows. He then alluded to the document, which, from a payments perspective, he said, demonstrates how institutional settlement activity creates sustained demand for XRP. The pundit added that price appreciation is supported through real transaction flow.
The document noted that when Ripple processes a transaction, 0.00001 XRP is removed from circulation. As such, they expect the altcoin’s circulating supply to decline over time and its price to rise in the process due to a potential supply shock. On the other hand, Lewis Jackson claims that XRP is simply recycled whenever institutions use Ripple’s payment system for cross-border transactions.
He declared that XRP’s utility is unlikely to drive higher prices, as these institutions, including banks, do not need to hold a significant amount of XRP to process transactions on Ripple’s payment system. This has sparked debate in the XRP community with another pundit, Apex Crypto, describing these statements as “dangerous junk” that could mislead people, especially new community members.
XRP Still At Risk Of Dropping Below $1
Crypto analyst Ali Martinez has warned that the XRP price is still at risk of dropping to as low as $0.80 amid debate over how the token’s utility will drive price appreciation. He outlined reasons why this massive price decline is a possibility, including that the XRP Ledger’s activity has cooled significantly. Martinez noted that daily active addresses have fallen to around 38,500, indicating fading participation and interest.
Furthermore, the analyst stated that XRP whales have turned into sellers, offloading over 40 million coins in recent days. He added that if the selling pressure continues, the altcoin risks losing the $1.77 support level, with a breakdown opening the door to the next major support near $0.80.
At the time of writing, the XRP price is trading at around $1.85, down over 2% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap.
