KEY POINTS
- Trump said the US crypto reserve will include $XRP and other 'valuable' digital assets
- $XRP pumped as high as $2.96 Sunday night – the token's all-time high was at $3.40
- Ripple's CEO criticized 'maximalism' yet again, urging collaboration instead of competition
XRP prices surged significantly Sunday night after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a digital assets strategic reserve that will include XRP, the world's third-largest crypto asset by market capitalization.
In his announcement, the president specifically said XRP, Solana (SOL), and Cardano (ADA) will be included in the national crypto reserve. He later clarified that Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) will also be included, as well as other "valuable" crypto tokens.
$XRP Closes In on All-Time High
XRP prices surged as high as $2.96 late Sunday, representing a 34% surge before eventually settling it at around $2.80.
The said prices are a significant jump from last week, when the token plunged as low as $2.
Also, Sunday night's spikes are steps closer to XRP's all-time high at $3.40 – a feat the cryptocurrency logged when it was challenging Bitcoin as the world's second-largest digital asset by market cap.
The token's price pump came after Trump identified XRP as one of the digital assets to be included in the U.S. crypto reserve.
Ripple CEO Celebrates News, Slams 'Maximalism' Yet Again
Many XRP holders were out and about on Elon Musk-owned X Sunday to celebrate the news, and among them was Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse. However, his post was more of a rebuke on "maximalism."
I’ve said this before - the crypto industry will achieve our goals (and beyond), IF WE WORK TOGETHER. Appreciate the crypto President @realDonaldTrump’s vision of a govt digital asset reserve representative of the industry.
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) March 2, 2025
Maximalism is the enemy of the industry’s progress.… https://t.co/GiAAI1NuRk
"Maximalism is the enemy of the industry's progress," Garlinghouse said following the news. He went on to reiterate that "the crypto industry will achieve our goals (and beyond), if we work together."
His comments seemed to take a swipe at certain Bitcoiners, who, last month, engaged in a social media tirade targeting Ripple and Garlinghouse, accusing the crypto executive of lobbying against a Bitcoin reserve to serve the fintech firm's interests.
"Glad to see POTUS recognizing we live in a multichain world," Garlinghouse continued.
The Bitcoiner vs $XRP Army Issue
Notably, the crypto community has referred to BTC "extremists" as Bitcoin maximalists since they believe the future will be one where Bitcoin is the only digital asset the world will ever need.
Other crypto holders beg to disagree, Garlinghouse included, arguing how other crypto assets have real utility while BTC is more of a store of value instead of a token that can be used for daily payments and similar transactions.
XRP Ledger validator Vet said he agrees that the crypto industry has now involved into a multi-chain system where people should be opting for "collaboration over competition."
Prominent Bitcoiner Pierre Rochard, the VP of research at BTC miner Riot Platforms, clapped back, grilling Garlinghouse on why Ripple, the world's largest holder of XRP, had allegedly been selling "so much XRP" if it was expecting the government to hold the token.
Brad, why does Ripple sell so much XRP?
— Pierre Rochard (@BitcoinPierre) March 2, 2025
You expect the government to buy XRP, but you are a seller.
You don’t walk the talk. This undermines your credibility.
Meanwhile, the crypto market has finally emerged from the red line, surging some 9% overnight following Trump's big news.
All other major cryptocurrencies were making gains, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, but XRP was among the overnight gainers.
