Ripple CEO Bradley Garlinghouse is pushing back against the idea that the company’s growing RLUSD stablecoin ambitions come at XRP’s expense, insisting the stablecoin is targeting a different market altogether.
As Ripple sharpens its vision for the XRP Ledger , a separate development is drawing attention to XRP’s price prospects, with prominent crypto trader Ali Charts spotting a chart pattern that previously preceded a staggering 71% rally.
RLUSD as a Growth Engine for the XRP Ledger
Garlinghouse sees the RLUSD stablecoin as a way to bring more activity and practical use cases to the XRP Ledger, not as a competitor to XRP. Instead of treating the stablecoin as a rival, he framed its growth as part of the broader momentum behind XRP, arguing that both assets can play complementary roles in expanding the ecosystem.
“RLUSD isn’t competing with XRP. It’s competing with other stablecoins. Use case matters, and I want those use cases running on the XRPL,” Garlinghouse wrote on X .
By targeting the wider market, Ripple hopes to expand the range of financial applications operating on its blockchain. Garlinghouse emphasized that the company wants RLUSD-powered use cases to run on XRPL, potentially attracting more businesses, developers, and institutional users to the network.
Garlinghouse was responding to XRP community researcher WrathofKahneman, who argued that RLUSD’s expansion could ultimately benefit XRP by increasing liquidity across the XRP Ledger. “RLUSD is great for XRP. More XRPL liquidity makes XRP easier to use in the long run & it isn’t replacing XRP where it wasn’t used,” the researcher wrote.
However, WrathofKahneman cautioned that the benefits may not immediately translate into significant price gains without direct demand for XRP. “The problem is that w/out direct use, price impact is 2nd order,” he added.
The researcher also raised a broader question about XRP’s future role in the ecosystem: “Will XRP become a specialized institutional asset with gated liquidity, or be ubiquitous?”
Agreed!
RLUSD isn’t competing with XRP. It’s competing with other stablecoins. Use case matters, and I want those use cases running on the XRPL.
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) November 3, 2026
The debate is particularly relevant as XRP trades around $1.28, well below its previous all-time high of $3.65, even as Ripple continues to expand its institutional footprint. While growing adoption could strengthen the XRP Ledger, investors are still watching to see whether that progress will translate into stronger demand and sustained price appreciation for XRP.
XRP’s Bollinger Bands Tighten to August Levels, Raising Hopes of Another 71% Rally
Meanwhile, crypto analyst Ali Charts has identified a potentially bullish technical signal on XRP’s four-hour chart, suggesting the token could be gearing up for another significant move. According to the analyst, XRP recently recorded its tightest Bollinger Band squeeze since August before breaking above the upper band, which could signal building upward momentum.
The setup is drawing attention because a similar period of extreme volatility compression preceded an impressive rally earlier this year. Ali Charts noted that the last time XRP’s Bollinger Bands were this tightly compressed, the token surged nearly 71% in just three days.
The pundit believes another parabolic price move could now be taking shape. At its current price of around $1.16, a repeat of the previous 71% surge would push XRP to approximately $2.19. Such a move would represent a substantial recovery for the token, potentially bringing it closer to key resistance levels and reigniting bullish sentiment across the XRP market.
Traders will be watching whether XRP can sustain its move above the upper Bollinger Band and attract enough buying pressure to confirm a breakout. However, a failure to hold the gains could turn the latest bullish signal into another false start.
