Standard Chartered has released a bullish new forecast for XRP, Ripple’s native digital asset, projecting a dramatic rise in its value over the next few years. According to Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank’s Head of Digital Assets Research, XRP could jump from its current price of approximately $2 to $12.50 by the end of 2028—a potential increase of over 500%.
Kendrick believes that XRP could even surpass Ethereum in market capitalization, becoming the second-largest non-stablecoin cryptocurrency after Bitcoin. He attributes much of this optimism to growing regulatory clarity, particularly the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to drop its appeal in the Ripple case. This development came shortly after Donald Trump’s election win, which markets interpret as a signal of a more crypto-friendly regulatory environment.
Looking ahead, Kendrick anticipates the SEC will approve XRP spot ETFs by Q3 2025, with inflows between $4 billion and $8 billion in their first year. He forecasts XRP’s price milestones as follows:
- $5.50 by end of 2024
- $8.00 by end of 2026
- $10.40 by end of 2027
- $12.50 by end of 2028, maintaining that level through 2029.
These predictions are based on the assumption that Bitcoin will reach $500,000 by 2028. While XRP has higher inflation than Bitcoin, Kendrick still expects it to perform strongly due to its growing utility.
A key driver of XRP’s potential is its primary use case: facilitating fast and low-cost cross-border payments. Kendrick notes this sector is one of the fastest-growing in crypto, with stablecoins already expanding by 50% annually and projected to grow tenfold in the next four years.
Additionally, Ripple is entering the tokenization market, launching initiatives like tokenized U.S. Treasury funds and a USD-backed stablecoin, RLUSD. Kendrick believes these developments position the XRP Ledger (XRPL) as a strong contender for real-world asset tokenization, similar to what Stellar has achieved.
Despite XRP’s strengths, Kendrick acknowledges some limitations—such as a smaller developer community and low transaction fees, which reduce fee-based revenue potential. However, he argues that regulatory clarity, ETF approval prospects, and increasing real-world use cases outweigh these challenges.
As of now, XRP has already surged over 7%, reaching $1.93. Standard Chartered maintains that further gains are sustainable, driven by political shifts, regulatory developments, and XRP’s strategic position in the evolving digital asset ecosystem.
