Recently, there have been few boring moments in the cryptocurrency industry. The Trump administration took over in January, with a monumental pivot on a much more advanced approach. The president ordered the creation of strategic reserves for digital assets, and regulators have waived numerous lawsuits against companies in the crypto sector.
Despite all this, Bitcoin (Cryptography: BTC) and XRP (Cryptography: XRP) (Ripple) has declined in 2025, but XRP has surpassed Bitcoin significantly over the past 12 months. It’s a bit of a head scratcher, especially for Bitcoin, the biggest and most notable cryptocurrency.
Is the relative strength of XRP by coincidence or is it a great cryptocurrency investment? Let’s see if XRP or Bitcoin is a better purchase today.
XRP and Bitcoin are two of the four largest cryptocurrencies. XRP has a market capitalization of $125 billion, with Bitcoin having a market value of $1.7 trillion. Financial technology company Ripple Labs has created XRP to promote cross-border transactions on its blockchain-based Ripple network.
Bitcoin is the original cryptocurrency, likened to gold. It is a decentralized digital currency that investors and organizations can accumulate to hedge inflation or use it as payments if accepted.
Cryptocurrencies can be a polarizing topic among investors as their value depends solely on supply and demand. They do not represent hard assets or underlying businesses such as goods, real estate, stocks, etc.
What is the best way to drive demand for cryptocurrency? Increase recruitment. The more cryptocurrency the global economy adopts, the more likely it will be that demand (and price) will increase.
Recent actions by the US government have been able to move the needle in that respect against XRP and Bitcoin. Instead of selling, the Trump administration announced it would begin stockpiling certain digital assets seized from criminal activity and confiscation. Ripple’s CEO expects XRP to be included in its stockpile.
Additionally, regulators have dropped the appeal in a long-term lawsuit against Ripple. The lawsuit began in 2020 and was undoubtedly a barrier to more financial institutions using the Ripple network.
The US government has also established its own Bitcoin Reserve. Initially, they will be filled with seized bitcoin, but in the future you will be able to purchase Bitcoin.
This is a major positive change from the government’s previous attitude towards cryptocurrency. We might assume that XRP and Bitcoin have skyrocketed after the March announcement. However, this seems to be the case when you buy rumors and sell the news.
The story continues
