- Legal experts, including Bill Morgan, believe that the XRP futures ETF filing could significantly boost institutional demand for XRP.
- While CME’s launch raises optimism about the SEC’s approval of spot XRP ETFs, the Ripple-SEC lawsuit remains a hurdle.
Blockchain startup Ripple continues to grab headlines while pushing ahead for XRP’s mainstream adoption. Despite the recent setback in the SEC lawsuit, the firm has continued its path with positive development. In a significant milestone, CME Group has announced the launch of an XRP futures ETF, marking a pivotal step for the community. This initiative set the premise for the approval of the spot XRP ETF in the future.
As per the planned schedule on May 19, the world’s leading derivatives marketplace, Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group, will introduce the XRP futures and Micro XRP futures, as highlighted in the previous story. These new offerings will be available in two contract sizes: a micro contract covering 2,500 tokens and a larger contract covering 50,000 tokens, both tied to the CME CF XRP-Dollar Reference Rate.
Commenting on this development, lawyer Bill Morgan discussed the potential impact of these “cash-settled futures contracts” on boosting institutional demand for XRP. In a post on X, Morgan talked about the importance of this milestone for the XRP community. “These are futures contracts. Do you know what that means for demand for XRP? Aren’t these cash-settled futures contracts?” he wrote.
CME’s launch of XRP futures contracts has raised expectations for a potential SEC approval of spot ETFs. While the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has acknowledged ETF applications from several asset managers, the final decision remains uncertain. Meanwhile, Brazil has taken the lead by introducing the first XRP ETF, XRPH11, marking a significant milestone in the crypto market.
Will Ripple-SEC Lawsuit Spoil the XRP ETF?
Although the launch of XRP Futures ETF by CME Group is certainly a positive development for the Ripple ecosystem, Judge Analisa Torres recently declined the joint motion by the SEC and Ripple for the $50 million lawsuit settlement. However, Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer, Stuart Alderoty, clarified that the court’s recent denial does not undermine Ripple’s prior legal victories, including the ruling that XRP is not classified as a security.
Amid these developments, the XRP price has failed to gain traction despite a greater thrust in the overall altcoin space. As of press time, XRP’s price is trading 2.99% down at $2.31 with its market cap at $135 billion.
Additionally, the daily trading volume has surged by 77% to $4.13 billion, showing a strong selling pressure at the moment. If the altcoin loses the crucial support at $2.30, it risks falling further to $2, said popular crypto analyst Ali Martinez.
$XRP could return to $2 if it loses the critical $2.30 support! pic.twitter.com/s6ozUyGYRC
— Ali (@ali_charts) May 18, 2025
But some market analysts like JD believe that there’s a huge scope for the Ripple price rally by 5x within a span of just two months. The analyst cites the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) and the Stochastic Relative Strength Index (SRSI) turning green simultaneously, which is a bullish signal as per historical trends.
