TL;DR

XRPs price hit a 7-year high of almost $2.90 amid optimism over its use in banking transactions, ETF speculation, and bullish predictions. Experts forecast the asset could hit $4 and $8 soon, with some projecting its market cap might exceed $500 billion.

XRP Makes the Headlines

The cryptocurrency sector experienced a substantial revival in the last 24 hours, with its global market capitalization rising above $3.5 trillion once again. Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), Cardano (ADA), and many more leading digital assets are well in the green today (January 15), but some lead the pack with double-digit price spikes.

One notable gainer is Ripples XRP, whose valuation recently hit a 7-year high of almost $2.90. Currently, the price is hovering around $2.88 (per CoinGeckos data), representing a 14% increase on a daily scale.

XRP Price, Source: CoinGecko Alongside its significant surge, XRP became the top-trending cryptocurrency on January 14. According to Santiment, the reasons behind the buzz surrounding the asset are the increased optimism over its potential use in banking and financial transactions, the bullish predictions of a further rally, and the XRP ETF speculations. 

The platforms research estimated that the second most-trending cryptocurrency is Ethereum (ETH). The interest is supposedly fueled by the introduction of Soneium (an Ethereum layer-2 blockchain solution developed by Sony). 

There are multiple transactions involving significant amounts of ETH, highlighting active trading and investment throughout the Ethereum ecosystem, Santiment added.

Other cryptocurrencies that have captured the attention of industry participants as of late include Bitcoin (BTC), Kaspa (KAS), and Peanut the Squirrel (PNUT). 

XRP Targets Fresh Peaks

As mentioned above, numerous analysts believe the price of Ripples native token could reach a new all-time high as soon as this year. X user CRYPTOWZRD recently claimed that the asset has flipped previous resistance to support of around $2 and is now poised to soar to $4 and then $8. They said such a scenario would mirror the pre-bull run in 2017 and the subsequent rally the following year.

The veteran trader Peter Brandt also chipped in. He outlined multiple bullish forecasts lately, assuming that XRPs market capitalization could explode above $500 billion. Such a pump would result in a price increase of almost $9.50.

It is worth mentioning that Brandt has been predominantly anti-XRP for the past several years. Earlier this month, though, he apologized for his stance and wished the Ripple community all the best.