The XRP Ledger Surpasses Ethereum in a Key Area. What Does This Mean for the XRP Price?
The XRP Ledger just beat Ethereum in a major tokenization category, yet XRP holders are watching their coin bleed value. Something is breaking the connection between ledger success and price, and the answer reveals a structural tension at the heart…
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The XRP Ledger, the underlying blockchain for XRP (CRYPTO: XRP), has seen impressive growth, pulling in $2.2 billion in net inflows for tokenized commodities in 2026—surpassing Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH), which garnered $1.6 billion. Net inflows represent the value of assets entering a blockchain minus those leaving it.
Yet despite this achievement, XRP’s price has kept falling. As of October 9, XRP is trading around $1.40, about 51% lower than a year ago and 62% below its $3.65 peak. By comparison, ETH has dropped about 44% over the same period.
So, does outperforming Ethereum in tokenized commodities affect the XRP price, or does the ledger value remain disconnected from demand for the coin itself?
The XRP Ledger’s $2.2 Billion Commodity Lead Relies on One Energy Token
Tokenization involves creating a digital token that represents ownership of assets like bonds, shares, or commodity contracts. On the XRP Ledger, a significant portion of the $2.2 billion in commodity inflows comes from JMWH, a Justoken token representing electricity-generation contracts. As of October 7, JMWH accounted for roughly 89% of the ledger’s total commodity value.
Interestingly, JMWH has only 165 holders, suggesting a small number of investors control most of its value. Earlier this year, just 19 wallets held JMWH, and the token showed no movement in May.
Overall, the XRP Ledger’s performance looks strong, attracting $3.6 billion in real-world asset (RWA) inflows in 2026 (up to September 11), the highest of any blockchain. The monthly transfer volume for RWAs reached about $7 billion. However, the ledger’s strong numbers hinge on just a couple of tokens, particularly JMWH.
Companies Can Use the XRP Ledger Without Buying XRP
Several companies, including Franklin Templeton (NYSE: BEN | BEN Price Prediction) and Ondo Finance, are utilizing the XRP Ledger to create tokenized funds. Notably, Ondo’s OUSG Treasury fund held approximately $188 million on the ledger as of October. However, issuers need only a small amount of XRP for account setup and transaction fees, so launching a fund on the ledger is separate from buying XRP in large quantities.
Transaction fees are the only direct link between ledger activity and XRP demand. Every transaction on the XRP Ledger burns at least 0.00001 XRP in fees. For instance, one million transfers would burn about 10 XRP, valued at roughly $14 at the current price of $1.40, against a total supply of nearly 100 billion tokens.
Ripple’s stablecoin, Ripple USD (RLUSD), is the ledger’s largest real-world asset, totaling about $1.2 billion. This stablecoin lets companies settle payments in dollars, so much of the ledger’s activity doesn’t require buying XRP.
XRP Has Fallen More Than ETH Despite the XRP Ledger’s Lead
Price data indicates that the ledger’s growth has not translated into gains for XRP, which has lost about 51% of its value over the past year. In contrast, ETH has declined about 44%, despite being the second-largest tokenized commodity. Ethereum’s market value stands at about $306 billion, more than three times XRP’s $89 billion.
Moreover, over the week leading up to October 9, XRP fell 8.4%, nearly matching ETH’s 8.6% decline. Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) also fell 4.1% during that time, suggesting that both XRP and ETH are influenced more by the broader crypto market than by their respective ledger’s tokenization figures.
Does the XRP Ledger’s Win Over Ethereum Affect the XRP Price?
In conclusion, while the XRP Ledger has outperformed Ethereum in tokenized commodities, this success has not increased XRP’s price. The $2.2 billion in commodity inflows is largely concentrated among JMWH’s 165 holders, and transaction fees from ledger activity burn only a small fraction of XRP. Additionally, XRP has declined more than ETH over the past year.
For XRP holders, the challenge is clear: the ledger value may not directly reflect demand for XRP. Tokenization totals can rise even as XRP’s price falls.
If ledger growth rises notably and subsequently draws investment into XRP, the scenario could change. If XRP funds start generating steady weekly net inflows and the number of JMWH holders increases significantly, we could finally see greater demand for the coin. On the price front, XRP would need to climb above $1.50—about 7% higher—to confirm this link. Conversely, if it dips below $1.36—around 3% lower—recent headlines about tokenization may have little effect on the XRP price.
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Sam Daodu is a crypto analyst who's spent nearly a decade making blockchain understandable—no easy task when most whitepapers read like fever dreams. He writes for 24/7 Wall St., covering Bitcoin, altcoins, and crypto market analysis for investors. Before crypto, he was a tech writer (back when explaining "the cloud" was peak innovation). Since 2018, he's written for CoinTelegraph, Yahoo Finance, The Block, Cryptonews, Zypto, Rain, and more—basically anywhere people want crypto news without the headache. Sam runs MacLabs Marketing, a content agency for crypto brands tired of sounding like AI wrote their website. He also publishes free crypto education on his site for Web3 enthusiasts who think "gas fees" is a typo. When he's not writing or staring at charts, Sam's either: - Watching anime (currently convinced One Piece has better tokenomics than most altcoins) - At the gym sculpting himself into a Greek god - Listening to the music your mum warned you only bad boys listen to Connect: LinkedIn | Email | MacLabs Marketing
