Johnny Rice, a contributing writer for The Motley Fool, argued Monday that the cryptocurrency XRP is likely to trade below $1 within five years, citing weakening demand drivers and a shift in how Ripple’s technology is being used.
Rice pointed to several recent developments that he says have failed to boost sustained investor demand. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission dropped its long-running lawsuit against Ripple, removing a major legal uncertainty. Spot XRP exchange-traded funds also launched, expanding retail and institutional access. Initial ETF inflows reached roughly $1.6 billion before falling to about $1 billion, Rice wrote.
Despite those events, XRP’s price has fallen from its July peak by more than 60 percent, Rice noted. The token has slipped well below levels seen earlier this year and is trading around $1.3–$1.4, depending on intraday movement. Market data in the original piece listed XRP’s market capitalization near $88 billion.
Rice said the main long-term thesis for XRP—banks adopting it as a bridge asset for cross-border payments—has not produced the expected demand. Ripple’s platform still sees growth in payments use, he acknowledged, but that adoption has not translated into sustained upward pressure on XRP’s market price.
A key reason, Rice argues, is the emergence of a different tool for payments clients: Ripple’s own stablecoin, RLUSD. Stablecoins are designed to maintain a $1 peg, which reduces the volatility risk that banks typically avoid. Rice wrote that banks are more likely to prefer a stable bridge asset than a token whose value can swing sharply over short periods, and that preference is eroding potential demand for XRP.
The piece frames Ripple as a company that is expanding its payments footprint while its native token struggles to capture that growth in market value. Rice concluded that Ripple’s corporate progress may not translate into higher prices for XRP and reaffirmed his view that XRP could fall under $1 within five years.
The article includes the author’s disclosure: Johnny Rice holds no positions in the discussed securities. The Motley Fool, however, has positions in and recommends XRP.
You can read the original article here: https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/04/20/xrp-price-prediction-why-it-could-fall-below-1/
