XRP Bulls Called for $100 Before Seoul: Ripple Unveils Privacy Tools and AI Wallets. What Do Holders Gain?

XRP (CRYPTO:XRP) proponents entered the XRP Seoul event with expectations of the coin hitting $100, while Ripple emerged with new privacy tools, AI-powered agent wallets, and the announcement of XRP Asia. Software engineer Vincent Van Code suggested on September 27, 2026, that XRP could reach $100 in three years “once full confidence kicks in.” Ripple had teased a “special announcement” for its October 3 event in Seoul.

The big reveal was the formation of XRP Asia, a new initiative led by former Hedera Foundation VP Sabrina Tachdjian. This group aims to connect more banks, developers, and startups with the XRP Ledger across the Asia-Pacific region. Additionally, Ripple’s engineers showcased new privacy and AI capabilities for the ledger.

Despite the excitement, trader activity remained steady, with XRP holding at around $1.50 as of October 4—up 1.1% in the last 24 hours but down 2.8% over the past week. So, what did XRP holders really gain from the event?

Ripple Used XRP Seoul to Add Privacy and AI Agent Tools to the XRP Ledger

The most significant upgrade is the introduction of privacy features. On a public blockchain, transaction details such as the sender, receiver, and amount are visible to everyone. This transparency can be a hurdle for banks that want to move client funds discreetly.

Ripple’s Ayo Akinyele introduced confidential transfers, a feature leveraging zero-knowledge proofs and encryption to obscure transaction amounts and balances. Validators, who confirm transactions, can still verify each transaction’s legitimacy without accessing the amounts. Token issuers can also designate specific auditors authorized to decrypt balances for regulatory purposes. This feature was first made available for a validator vote in Ripple’s ledger release 3.3.0.

The second upgrade focuses on AI agents—programs that manage wallets and autonomously handle payments for data or services without needing user approval for each transaction. Ripple showcased verified identities for these agents, alongside spending limits and smart wallets that can hold both XRP and stablecoins. Ripple reported that agents have already executed over 11 million transactions on the ledger, with projections suggesting this could grow to 100 million.

Moreover, the ledger’s upcoming Batch upgrade, which will allow users to group multiple transactions so they either all succeed or all fail, is set to take effect on October 9. Additionally, Korea’s JB Bank is expected to roll out Ripple-enabled remittances to Southeast Asia by mid-December.

XRP Needs a $6.3 Trillion Market Cap to Reach $100

Currently, XRP’s market cap is about $95 billion at a price of $1.50. With around 63 billion XRP in circulation, a $100 price would push the market value to about $6.3 trillion—more than double Bitcoin’s peak of about $2.5 trillion. No cryptocurrency has ever come close to this valuation.

Van Code tied his price target to confidence in the crypto market rather than specific usage metrics. Another analyst, Pompius, outlined seven conditions earlier in April, including the need for billions of dollars in weekly XRP ETF inflows. However, since XRP ETFs launched, they have attracted less than $2 billion, indicating the market is far from meeting his initial conditions.

XRP Seoul’s Upgrades Don’t Require Banks or Agents to Hold XRP

Both upgrades could succeed without shifting XRP’s price. The confidential transfers feature allows banks to use private tokens and other assets on the network, using XRP only for minimal fees. Similarly, AI-powered wallets can hold stablecoins, meaning agents can transact using these stablecoins rather than XRP.

Recent trends show that XRP has declined by 50% over the past year and is currently trading 59% below its peak of $3.65 from July 2025, even after a year filled with Ripple’s partnership announcements and product launches. Its modest 3% gain over the last month is a small uptick against this backdrop of decline.

What Is XRP Worth After XRP Seoul?

After XRP Seoul, XRP remains around $1.50, largely unchanged because Ripple announced ledger enhancements rather than new incentives to buy the coin. Banks now have tools for greater transaction privacy, agents benefit from better wallets, and the Asia-Pacific region gets a dedicated team to recruit developers.

Yet, the first two enhancements can function with stablecoins, and XRP Asia focuses on attracting users to the ledger without necessarily boosting demand for XRP itself.

This challenges those bullish on XRP reaching $100, since a more active ledger can develop without making XRP scarcer. The narrative may shift if a prominent bank or platform publicly demonstrates real-world use of these features and settles transactions using XRP at high volume. Until then, the question remains: Can anything from XRP Seoul drive XRP’s price back toward its previous highs?

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