Market Pulse: XRP Slips Below BNB in Q1 2026 Rankings, but New Institutional Data Flashes Bullish Signals

According to recent market coverage, despite a strong start to 2026, XRP closed Q1 at $1.34, representing a 27.1% quarter-over-quarter decline.

Cumulatively, 14.3 million XRP has been burned since inception—a low burn rate that Messari attributes to the XRPL’s inherently low fees.

After a promising start to 2026, XRP closed the first quarter at $1.34, a quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) decline of 27.1%.

Consequently, XRP—whose circulating supply moved higher 1.1% to 61.34 billion—ended the quarter with an $82.21 billion market capitalization, effectively relinquishing its position as the No.

According to the latest Messari report, XRP closed the quarter slightly underperforming the combined trading market capitalization of the three non- stablecoin crypto assets with higher trading market caps: bitcoin ( BTC), ethereum ( ETH), and BNB, which combined decreased 23.3% QoQ.

While the first half of May saw XRP reclaim $1.50, the rebound was fleeting; the cryptocurrency lost nearly all its gains by May 31, leaving its market cap virtually unchanged.

In addition to the market cap decline, the digital asset experienced a notable drop in transaction fees, which plunged nearly 40% QoQ.

“Transaction fees (USD) declined 39.3% QoQ from $133,100 to $80,710, while native transaction fees declined 12% QoQ from 57,600 XRP to 50,750 XRP.