What Is Behind the XRP Rally?
XRP has seen a huge rally over the last 24 hours. This has been due to several factors, including upcoming ledger changes.
A broad crypto rally has seen prices surge. Bitcoin pushed above the $85,000 barrier, while XRP rose to pass the $150 mark. Behind this are some macroeconomic tailwinds. Yet the real momentum has come from a short squeeze. Incoming changes to XRP's ledger and the RLUSD stablecoin could also be a factor.
What Is the Price of XRP?
On Monday the 21st, the XRP price rose, threatening the $150 barrier. The XRP USD price then smashed this ceiling, and it stands at $1.52 as of September 22nd, 2026. This equates to around 1.46 INR. Many traders are hedging this as a bullish breakout, which could push it as far as $1.60 USD.
In a 24-hour period, this meant it surged by a huge 7% in a broader rally across crypto markets. Trading volume jumped 155% to $7.4B, while crypto short liquidations reached $845M. Much of this has been due to changes to the payment system in Ripple's ecosystem.
All of this brought a +160% jump in trading volume. However, it does still remain down 50% over the year.
Liquidations were a major factor, and they take place when traders who have used leverage can no longer maintain positions that have moved against their interests. When prices go up, traders who had banked on a decline had to close their shorts. Closing involves a process of buying an asset back, which increases the momentum and feeds into a rally.
Why Are American Airlines Using Ripple?
Key pieces of information also came to light in the week before, mainly involving real-world usage of Ripple's ecosystem. American Airlines announced that it would use the Ripple Treasury to build a fleet management database system. This will create worksheets that will “centralize, streamline, and meticulously track and manage each component of their expansive and complex fleet of aircraft,” according to their own website.
Ripple rolled out its treasury platform in January of 2026. This integrated their acquired GTreasury software with the blockchain to unify cash and digital asset management. Its aim is to improve cross-border payments and liquidity management.
This can only back the business credentials of Ripple, as they move the XRP ledger to an upgrade. Batch V1.1 is now in a two-week activation window. The change currently stands at an 85.71% consensus status.
Changes to this will mean that multiple XRPL transactions can be made from multiple accounts, all with a single ledger close. This will accelerate many of the use cases already in process or in the pipeline.
What Is the RLUSD Stablecoin?
Ripple is also introducing other cryptocurrencies aside from XRP, one of which is the RLUSD stablecoin. Pegged 1:1 to the USD, it has been created to connect banks, fintechs, and businesses with public blockchains. As it is pegged to the dollar, it avoids the volatility inherent in many other cryptocurrencies, making it extremely useful for accounting and settlements.
Real-world examples of its use are becoming more frequent, which may have helped XRP move forward. Deutsche Bank has said that it plans to use it with monthly payment volumes for institutional clients. Financial institutions like AMINA Bank in Switzerland have also begun using it.
How Is Ripple Trying to Power AI Agents?
Changes to its ledger are also extremely important. This is because Ripple recently integrated the Machine Payments Protocol (MPP) and OpenWallet Standard, which it then did in conjunction with payment gateway Stripe. Alongside the x402 standard it introduced earlier in the year, it is part of a race to be a standard for AI agents.
The x402 standard will turn the largely redundant “402 Payment Required” into a checkout service, which sits directly within an internet request. Price and payment instructions are sent back, then an agent signs and gets the requested data after verification.
Similar ventures have been launched on the BNB chain. Binance noted that “Q402 is now live on BNB Chain, marking Quack AI’s formal entry into execution-layer infrastructure for autonomous agents. The launch was announced through official posts on X, describing Q402 as the execution layer for the emerging Agent Economy. The protocol introduces one-signature execution for payments, governance actions, and automated workflows.Q402 operates without token upgrades or new approval flows.”
Thus, Ripple is not the only one in the race. Cardano and Solana are also trying to get the x402 standard installed where machine payments may be required. All of this positions XRP in a great place for being a major AI payment agent of choice.
Author Bio – Pam Brown is a journalist with exceptional analytical skills and a strong interest in modern financial systems. She specializes in translating complex topics like crypto, loans, and forex into clear, accessible content. Pam’s precise, research-driven writing has made her a trusted voice in the financial and fintech space.