What is XRP?
XRP is the native token of the XRP Ledger (XRPL), a permissionless, decentralized and open-source blockchain that is optimized for speed and scalability. Ripple Labs (“Ripple”), a privately held company, created XRPL to allow for fast and low-cost international money transfers. The XRP token acts as a bridge for financial institutions by enabling liquidity between different fiat currencies without needing traditional pre-funded accounts. Unlike bitcoin, XRP transactions settle in seconds with minimal fees, making it a more attractive option than bitcoin for cross-border payment solutions. Ripple’s broader goal is to facilitate and modernize global payment infrastructure using XRP. Currently, it's an exciting time for XRP as more financial institutions adopt the token, and a record number of active wallets around the world are holding it.1
How does the XRP Ledger differ from other blockchains?
Unlike proof-of-work or proof-of-stake mechanisms, the XRPL uses a unique consensus protocol, the XRPL Consensus Protocol, a trust-based system where a majority of trusted validator nodes (Unique Node List) must agree on which transactions have occurred and their order before they are added to the ledger. This efficient agreement process allows the XRPL to handle 1,500 transactions per second and also enables faster settlement times, which usually take three to five seconds. The network accomplishes this without the need for energy-intensive mining or staking which can increase transaction fees and limit validator participation. The higher transaction capacity, fast settlement times and lower fees associated with the XRPL makes it a viable option for enterprise-level financial applications.
How many XRP tokens are there in circulation?
Unlike bitcoin, whose supply increases through a process called mining until 21 million bitcoin is reached, XRP was pre-mined with 100 billion XRP introduced at launch. 80 billion XRP was gifted to Ripple to help with the development of the XRPL and 20 billion was allocated to founders and core team. The majority of Ripple’s XRP is held in escrow and currently, there are about 58 billion XRP in circulation. There is no inflation schedule. Instead, a small amount of XRP is permanently destroyed or burned with each transaction, slowly chipping away at the circulating supply over time. This deflationary mechanism, combined with its high liquidity and scalable focus, aims to preserve value and utility in XRP as usage scales.
2025 XRP outlook
XRP’s scalability and low transaction fees continue to make it an appealing choice for large institutions and global market participants. 2025 has seen a surge in XRP Ledger usage with strong growth in active addresses and transaction volumes.2
There are various factors to consider when looking at XRP’s future potential:
- Growth in institutional adoption: Ripple’s $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road is a strategic move that aims to further integrate XRP into institutional finance, enhancing its role in decentralized finance and cross-margining between digital and traditional assets.3
- Stablecoin integration: Ripple Labs recently launched a stable coin (RLUSD), which runs natively on the XRP Ledger, increasing transaction volume, liquidity and adoption of the network. This rising demand from RLUSD further highlights XRP’s potential as a bridge asset in the ever-growing cryptocurrency landscape.4
- Competitive landscape and market participation: Ripple Labs continues to innovate and position XRP as a viable choice for institutional uses, cross-border payments and low-fee transactions. Together, XRP’s success in enterprise landscapes and adoption across markets and exchanges creates a real-world feedback loop that builds on itself.
Gaining exposure to XRP with our XRP futures
Market participation continues to surge for XRP, with large institutions, active traders and crypto-focused entities fueling the growth.
Our XRP and Micro XRP futures are key tools for traders to effectively manage their price risk by providing additional trading opportunities through a regulated, trusted and reliable exchange.
Contract highlights
XRP futures are available in two sizes: XRP (XRP) futures with a contract multiplier of 50,000 XRP and Micro XRP (MXP) futures with a contract multiplier of 2,500 XRP. The different sizes allow market participants greater flexibility in managing their exposure and matching their trading strategies.
The contracts are financially settled and expire on the last Friday of every month. One key advantage of financially settled futures is the elimination of the costs and complexities associated with storing and managing the underlying digital asset. Investors can gain exposure to XRP price movements without dealing with wallets, custodians, insurance or security concerns, making it more accessible to financial institutions.
At final settlement, the contracts settle to the value of the CME CF XRP-Dollar Reference Rate, a benchmark index calculated and administered by CF Benchmarks. The rate is calculated based on aggregated pricing data from major cryptocurrency exchanges and provides a daily U.S. dollar price for XRP.
Trading at CME Group, with over 180 years of expertise, offers structure against flash crashes and exchange outages, ensuring a stable trading environment. Our leadership in Cryptocurrency futures - first with Bitcoin, Ether and Solana contracts - continues to expand with the launch of XRP futures. This addition allows traders to access new cryptocurrency markets and manage more crypto-related risks.
XRP futures contract specifications
XRP futures may be transacted around the clock on Globex, beginning Sunday evening at 6∶00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) and ending at 5∶00 p.m. ET Friday afternoon. Bilateral transactions such as block trades, BTICs (Basis Trade at Index Close) and EFRPs (exchange for related position), may be negotiated and executed 24/7 if submitted for clearing during the appropriate clearing session.
References
XRP Futures
Explore new opportunities in crypto trading with XRP and Micro XRP futures.
All examples in this report are hypothetical interpretations of situations and are used for explanation purposes only. The views in this report reflect solely those of the author and not necessarily those of CME Group or its affiliated institutions. This report and the information herein should not be considered investment advice or the results of actual market experience.
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