The adoption phase kick in with new XRPL features like Token Escrow XLS‑85 and upcoming permissioned DEX domains.
Molt Media, an XRP-focused market analyst, is telling viewers to brace for short‑term turbulence while arguing that the real XRP story is shifting decisively away from speculation and into institutional utility — with 2026 framed as the year “institutional adoption at scale” shows up on-chain.
The host’s latest breakdown centers on a cluster of recent developments around Ripple, the XRP Ledger (XRPL) and broader macro risk, while stressing that utility, not hype, will be what drives the next major leg of XRP pricing.
From DeFi Stagnation To TradFi Trillions Coming
Mr. Molt highlights comments from former Ripple CTO and current board member David Schwartz, who noted that the DeFi market has been “stuck around $150 billion” in size for roughly two years, with most of that growth coming from token price appreciation rather than “economic expansion.”
By contrast, Schwartz pointed to the traditional finance (TradFi) lending market, measured in the trillions, as the real opportunity. “We’re not going to get into the multi‑trillion dollar TradFi market just with cryptocurrency speculation,” he said, calling for tokenized real‑world assets and money market funds to bridge the gap.
According to the host, Ripple president Monica Long recently tied that thesis directly to XRP, characterizing 2026 as the year of “institutional adoption at scale” for the asset and its ledger — not a distant 2028-2029 horizon, but a near‑term deployment and production timeline.
XRPL Upgrades, Big Banks & Regulatory Footing
On the technical side, the analyst notes that Token Escrow XLS‑85 is now live on the XRP mainnet, and that “permissioned domains” are already active on XRPL, with permissioned domains on the built‑in DEX slated to go live on February 18. He frames this as the missing piece for institutional flows: tools that allow compliant, controlled access to on‑chain liquidity.
Institutional signals were another focus. Molt cited public data showing Goldman Sachs holding XRP via exchange‑traded products, with roughly $150 million in XRP ETF exposure said to represent about 14% of net XRP ETF inflows over the past year. For Goldman, he concedes, that sum is modest, but he treats it as a directional signal on which assets large players are willing to hold.
Molt also flags that Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has joined the CFTC’s Innovation Advisory Committee, and that Ripple now holds more than 40 regulatory approvals across Europe, plus a payments license from Singapore’s MAS and fresh UK authorization. In his view, this builds the legal corridor needed for a future U.S. banking license, which he argues would make Ripple a “regulated dollar gateway” with its RLUSD stablecoin acting as “connective tissue of liquidity” over XRPL.
Macro Risks, Fear Index Lows & What Comes Next
Despite the bullish infrastructure story, the short‑term outlook is less comforting. The analyst notes betting markets are putting the odds of a U.S. government shutdown above 92%, and he is watching U.S.-Iran tensions and any potential escalation that could hit risk assets broadly..
He points to the crypto fear and greed index sitting in “extreme fear” territory (around 8, after dipping to 5), and concedes XRP “could drop lower” even after a modest 3.5% daily gain he dismisses as noise. January CPI coming in at 2.4%, just under expectations, is seen as giving the Federal Reserve more room to cut rates later this year, which could eventually lift digital assets.
On the regulatory front, he is “glass half‑full” about the U.S. Clarity Act, saying current odds imply about a 50-50 chance of it being signed into law this year, but emphasizing its bipartisan support. Any statutory clarity for digital assets, in his view, would be a major tailwind for XRP and the broader market.
For now, he frames the environment as one where retail has largely stepped back, leaving what he calls “diehards” who are focused on technology, acquisitions, partnerships and the coming institutional plumbing — conditions he believes will shape the next decisive move for XRP far more than day‑to‑day price swings.
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