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As Ripple accelerates the expansion of its infrastructure for institutional investors, a prediction made eight years ago by its former chief technology officer has resurfaced, drawing market attention to whether XRP (Ripple) can reclaim the $3 mark.
According to cryptocurrency media outlet CCN on March 4 (local time), Hidden Road, a prime brokerage platform acquired by Ripple in 2025 for $1.25 billion and rebranded as Ripple Prime, was recently listed in the National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC) Market Participant Identifier directory. The NSCC serves as core infrastructure used by traditional financial institutions for post-trade processing, and the listing suggests that Ripple’s platform is becoming fully integrated into the mainstream financial system.
Amid this institutional-focused expansion, past remarks by former Ripple CTO David Schwartz have regained attention. About eight years ago, he stated that while banks could use Ripple’s payment software without XRP, if XRP established itself as a bridge asset for cross-border payments and offered cost advantages over existing methods, companies would stockpile it as working capital for global transactions, potentially driving massive demand and significant price appreciation.
Experts’ price outlooks diverge sharply. Motley Fool analyst Alex Carchidi viewed positively the launch of the XRP Ledger Ethereum Virtual Machine (XRPL EVM) sidechain in 2025 and the expansion of institutional services, predicting that XRP could surpass $3 again by 2026. In contrast, fellow analyst Dominic Basulto pointed to the broader weakness in the cryptocurrency market, warning that if conditions deteriorate, the token could fall below the psychological support level of $1.
CCN analyst Abiodun Oladokun noted that a declining Network Value to Transaction (NVT) ratio and reduced exchange activity suggest strengthening underlying demand. However, he also observed that the Elder-Ray Index has remained deeply negative since mid-January, indicating sustained selling pressure and giving bears the upper hand for now.
Oladokun projected that if the bearish trend solidifies without a meaningful recovery in demand, XRP could fall to $1.11 in March. However, if market momentum turns upward and breaks through the $1.42 resistance level, a path toward $1.61 could open. As of the time of writing, XRP is trading at $1.40, down about 12% over the past month.
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