How XRP’s ‘Banker Coin’ Reputation Is Challenged by Ethereum, Solana
XRP’s “banker coin” reputation is slipping as Ethereum and Solana pull ahead in stablecoins and tokenization, recent analysis argues.Why Stablecoins Already Passed XRP ByXRP’s original pitch centered on facilitating cross-border payments through partnerships with banks like American Express and Santander, a narrative that fueled its roughly 1,000x rally into the 2017 peak.That thesis has since been overtaken by stablecoins, which solve the same cross-border problem without XRP’s price volatility.Data from RWA.xyz shows USDT leading with nearly $200 billion in circulation, followed by Circle’s USDC at $73 billion.Ripple’s own stablecoin, RLUSD , barely cracks the top 10 with about $1 billion. Many of Ripple’s bank partnerships also ran through RippleNet rather than the actual XRP Ledger, meaning the volume never directly benefited XRP token holders.Why Tokenization Is XRP’s Last Shot at the TitleRobinhood CEO Vlad Tenev has described real-world asset tokenization as a “super cycle” poised to reshape the entire financial system, a market some estimate could eventually touch the $1 quadrillion derivatives space.That shift represents Ripple’s final chance to earn the banker coin label in a meaningful way, according to the analysis.Total tokenized real-world assets across crypto have surpassed $50 billion since 2025, but the leaderboard tells a different story for XRP:Ethereum: leads the pack by a wide marginBNB Chain , Solana, Stellar , Avalanche : all ahead of the XRP LedgerXRP’s own RWA figures carry a catch, since its largest tokenized asset, JNWH, representing $2.25 billion in energy contracts, has almost no secondary trading liquidity, meaning the value sits largely locked up rather than actively traded.Stripping that token out leaves Ondo’s tokenized U.S. government bond fund as XRP’s top distributed RWA asset, making up 20% of its remaining activity, a dynamic that raises the question of why investors would hold XRP over Ondo itself.What Ripple Needs to Do From HereThe analysis lays out three paths for Ripple to reclaim ground:Build real ecosystem support rather than operating as a closed, company-controlled network.Land major traditional finance partnerships with firms like BlackRock or Franklin Templeton that build directly on the XRP Ledger.Grow actual, distributed RWA trading volume, rather than leaning on partnerships like Ondo’s that arguably compete with XRP for the same investor dollars.XRP has struggled to clear resistance near its May high and faces support near $1.29.A break below that level could open further downside, with the broader thesis hinging on whether Ripple captures meaningful tokenization market share before Ethereum, Solana and other networks lock in their lead.Preview Image: Shutterstock