XRP Spot ETF, which attracted $100 million in its early launch, why did it plummet by over 93%, more than half?

▲ XRP ETF/ChatGPT generated image ©

The net inflow into the XRP (Ripple) spot ETF, which initially attracted global institutional funds at an astonishing rate and was considered a guaranteed success in the virtual asset market, has plummeted by nearly 100% from its all-time high in just a few months. As a result, market attention is now focused on the reasons behind the rapid cooling of this once-hot institutional fervor.

According to the cryptocurrency media outlet Finbold on May 25 (local time), when the XRP spot ETF first began trading in the US market on November 14, 2025, it achieved a record daily net inflow of $14.71 million (USD) in a single day, driven by optimism regarding regulatory clarity and the swift product approval by major issuers such as Canary Capital, Bitwise, Franklin Templeton, and Grayscale. At the time, XRP was trading around $2.32, benefiting significantly from institutional adoption. However, data from the analytics platform CoinGlass shows that as of May 22 this year, the daily net inflow has shrunk to $6.9 million, representing a sharp decline of approximately 93.4% from its initial peak.

While the pace of daily fund inflows has noticeably slowed, the total assets accumulated by the XRP spot ETF ecosystem since its launch remain robust. As of May 2026, the cumulative net inflow reached approximately $1.39 billion, and the total assets under management (AUM) for the seven currently active spot ETFs range between $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion. Notably, these products recorded positive inflows for all of their first 30 trading days after launch, demonstrating a strength that surpassed the performance of Bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum spot ETFs during the same period, and even broke the $1 billion cumulative inflow mark around December 2025.

Even this year, intermittent large-scale fund inflows have continued, with a monthly net inflow of over $80 million recorded in April alone, showcasing its resilience. However, despite this steady ETF demand, it has not translated into a tangible force driving XRP's price increase in the actual spot market. The price of XRP was largely trapped in a dull sideways trading range with a downward trend throughout 2026, influenced by the overall bearish sentiment in the global virtual asset market and macroeconomic pressures, recently hovering around the $1.30 mark.

As of the time of writing, XRP is trading around $1.36, down nearly 0.5% from 24 hours ago. Media experts attribute the recent rapid cooling of fund inflows into spot ETFs to profit-taking sales following the initial surge, the absence of new catalysts to capture market attention, and intense competition for funds with other assets across the broader cryptocurrency sector.

Nevertheless, XRP products within the overall virtual asset spot ETF market are evaluated as showing relative fundamental resilience, maintaining positive inflow trends for most weeks since launch and firmly holding the $1 billion AUM threshold. Financial market experts predict that if overall investment sentiment in global virtual assets improves significantly in the future, institutional buying at lower prices, coupled with renewed ETF fund inflows, could lead to a sharp recovery.

*Disclaimer: This article is for investment reference only, and we are not responsible for any investment losses based on it. The content should be interpreted for informational purposes only.*