First-quarter activity on the Ripple ledger sees a significant uptick, with usage of the XRP token spiking by more than a third.

XRP utility recorded a sharp increase in the first quarter of 2026, with average daily transactions on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) jumping 35% quarter-over-quarter to 2.48 million. The increase in XRP Ledger transactions comes as the XRPL ecosystem expands its footprint in tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), stablecoins, and decentralized finance infrastructure. The latest quarterly data published by Messari on May 29 shows that XRP’s role within the network is growing as more institutions utilize the ledger for settlement, liquidity, and asset management. According to the report, the average daily transactions on the XRP Ledger increased from 1.83 million to 2.48 million during the quarter, representing a 35.3% rise. The 35% increase in XRP Ledger transactions is one of the strongest indicators of rising XRP utility, as every network transaction requires XRP for fees and reserve requirements. Messari noted that growing institutional adoption of tokenized assets, stablecoins, and decentralized liquidity solutions is driving higher activity across the XRPL. Supporting this trend, the XRPL’s real-world asset market cap surged 124% quarter-over-quarter to $2.25 billion, making it the fourth-largest blockchain network for tokenized assets and strengthening XRP Ledger adoption among institutional users. The growth in tokenized assets highlights rising institutional demand for the XRP Ledger, with increased issuance and transfer activity contributing to greater network usage. At the same time, Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin expanded 45% quarter-over-quarter to a market capitalization of $340.3 million, maintaining its position as the largest stablecoin on XRPL. The growth reflects increasing adoption of stablecoins for payments, settlement, liquidity management, and decentralized finance applications. Institutional interest also continued to build, with U.S. spot XRP ETF holdings rising 2% to 775.4 million XRP, or about 1.3% of the circulating supply. Ongoing upgrades focused on compliance, privacy, security, AI integration, and quantum readiness are expected to further support XRP Ledger adoption. With daily transactions up 35% and strong growth across RWAs and stablecoins, Q1 2026 marked another quarter of expanding XRP utility and network activity. As of press time, XRP was trading at $1.34, up 1.65% over the past 24 hours and 2.3% on the weekly timeframe. Interestingly, the growing network activity has yet to translate into stronger XRP price performance, with the cryptocurrency largely trading in line with the broader market consolidation.