Don't Buy XRP Until This Happens

By Anders Bylund – Feb 7, 2026 at 9:33AM ESTKey PointsXRP soared after the 2024 election but has since dropped more than 50% from its peak.The token's valuation looks more reasonable now, but that alone isn't enough to make it a buy.I'd want to see something real before buying, such as transparent volume data or a major bank publicly committing to XRP.We’re bullish on these 10 stocks ›CRYPTO: XRPXRPMarket Cap$86BToday's Changeangle-down(-4.55%) $0.07Current Price$1.42Price as of February 7, 2026 at 10:29 AM ETXRP has dropped more than 50% from its peak, but I want more than just a lower price tag. Here's what needs to happen before I'd consider buying this cryptocurrency again.Back in 2024, XRP (XRP 4.55%) looked like a great investment. Parent company Ripple Labs was wrapping up its long-running legal troubles, and the election results pointed to a more crypto-friendly administration. And XRP traded at just $0.70 per coin in early November that year, making its total market value a fairly modest $41 billion. Things changed at that point. XRP started to skyrocket, soaring to $2.70 by Dec. 2 and $3.30 in mid-January 2025. At that point, XRP was a crypto giant. With a market value of $182 billion, only Bitcoin (BTC +1.14%) and Ethereum (ETH +3.69%) had a larger footprint. ExpandCRYPTO: XRPXRPToday's Change(-4.55%) $-0.07Current Price$1.42Key Data PointsMarket Cap$86BDay's Range$1.39 - $1.5352wk Range$1.14 - $3.65Volume7.9B That jump was too much, too fast. XRP was priced for absolute perfection, leaving little room for further gains and a steep downside. The coin was no longer a top choice, in my view. The price chart has been diving since July, primarily due to macroeconomic uncertainty. The downturn applies to most of the crypto market, but XRP took a deeper six-month dive than Ethereum or Bitcoin. It's down more than 50% from the peak, and valuation isn't really holding me back anymore. All told, XRP has roughly doubled from 2024's election week, which looks appropriate, given the lawsuit resolution. But I'm still not buying XRP until people and financial institutions actually start to use it. Show me the money (moving through XRP) XRP was designed to facilitate cross-border payments. Ripple Labs pitched it as a faster, cheaper alternative to the SWIFT network (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) that banks use for this purpose today. The idea is compelling; international wire transfers can take days and cost a fortune in fees. XRP transactions settle in seconds and cost fractions of a penny. Image source: Getty Images. So XRP sounds great on paper. In practice, Ripple has announced dozens of partnerships with banks and payment providers over the years. Most of these pilots never scaled into meaningful transaction volume, though. The company doesn't disclose how much XRP actually flows through its On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) service, so investors are left squinting at loosely related press releases and hoping for the best. I've been squinting for a while now. Here's what would make me stop and possibly invest: Transparent volume data: Ripple publishing regular, audited reports on ODL transaction volume would help. Show me the receipts, please. A big bank goes on the record: Not a pilot, not a memorandum of understanding, not a "strategic partnership" that goes nowhere. I want a top-20 global bank saying, "We move billions of dollars with XRP." Some defense against the competition: Stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are reaching for the same cross-border payments market with different blockchain-based solutions. XRP needs a reason to win that fight beyond "We got here first." Without these signals, XRP remains a bet on potential rather than performance. Ripple has been making the same pitch for nearly a decade. I'd like to see it land before I buy a ticket. Lower coin prices are a good start, but I'm looking for serious real-world progress.Read NextFeb 6, 2026 •By Johnny RiceWhy Is XRP Up 24.1% on Friday?Feb 6, 2026 •By Leo SunCrypto Crash: 2 Top Altcoins I'd Consider Buying Before Prices ReboundFeb 5, 2026 •By Alex Carchidi1 Trend That Could Drive XRP Higher and Higher in 2026Feb 5, 2026 •By Manali Pradhan, CFAWhere Will XRP (Ripple) Go Next?Feb 3, 2026 •By Justin PopeIs XRP a Millionaire Maker?Feb 2, 2026 •By Alex CarchidiCan XRP Benefit From Artificial Intelligence?About the AuthorAnders Bylund is a contributing Motley Fool media and technology analyst covering semiconductors, cloud computing, internet infrastructure, quantum computing, and streaming media. Previously, Anders was a systems administrator for Nielsen Technology and CSX, gaining hands-on experience with enterprise-class systems. He was also a freelance writer for Ars Technica, TIME, USA Today, CNN, WIRED, and AOL's Daily Finance. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s degree in library and information sciences from Florida State University. He believes in coyotes and time as an abstract.TMFZahrimX@TMFZahrimStocks MentionedXRPCRYPTO: XRP$1.42 (4.55%) $0.07BitcoinCRYPTO: BTC$69167.00 (+1.14%) $+778.52EthereumCRYPTO: ETH$2044.28 (+3.69%) $+72.82*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.