Ripple futures launch on Coinbase

While prices of altcoins like Ethereum, Solana and XRP are under more pressure than Bitcoin due to the geopolitical uncertainty sparked by the trade war of the American president Donald Trump,

As prices of altcoins like Ethereum, Solana, and XRP come under more pressure than Bitcoin due to the geopolitical uncertainty sparked by the trade war of the American president Donald Trump, Ripple itself is making big moves on the institutional front. Following the recent launch of Asia's first XRP tracker fund, Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the U.S., has now received official approval from the CFTC to introduce regulated XRP futures.

"With pride we announce that Coinbase Derivatives has filed a self-certification with the CFTC for XRP futures – a regulated, capital-efficient way to gain exposure to one of the most liquid digital assets," View post on Xthe exchange said earlier this month. On Easter Monday, the confirmation followed: the XRP futures are live. The new derivatives give institutional investors easy access to XRP – a potentially bullish signal for the weeks ahead?

XRP benefits from legal clarity and broad adoption

Compared with other altcoins, XRP currently seems to benefit from a unique combination: legal clarity after a four-year feud with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, broad availability on trading platforms, and a strong position as the third-largest cryptocurrency by market cap. This combination makes the digital asset particularly attractive to institutional players – and raises the odds that a Ripple spot ETF will receive approval soon.

Several large investment firms, including WisdomTree, Franklin Templeton, and Grayscale, have now filed applications for an XRP ETF. Just as with Bitcoin and Ethereum, futures could again set the stage for a final approval of spot ETFs.

Ripple CEO sees the "inevitable" arrival of XRP ETFs

Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, is optimistic. As early as fall 2024, he spoke about the 'inevitability' of XRP ETFs. Recently he reiterated his confidence and predicted a "wave of ETF approvals" in the second half of 2025. According to a JPMorgan report, XRP via such funds could attract between $4 billion and $8 billion of new capital within a single trading year.

Asset manager Bitwise also sees growth potential. In a so-called ‘bull scenario’ the firm predicts XRP could reach $12.70 within five years — provided Ripple continues expanding its network, forges new strategic partnerships, and gains a foothold in the stablecoin market.

Ripple's stablecoin: friend or rival to XRP?

Ripple's own stablecoin, Ripple USD (RLUSD), has now reached a market cap of about $300 million. That's still far from the sector giants: USDC ($61 billion) and USDT ($145 billion). Still, RLUSD could in the future pose a competitor to XRP as a bridge currency for international payments, precisely because a stablecoin is more attractive to institutional users than a volatile coin.