Catenaa, Tuesday, March 10, 2026- Goldman Sachs held the largest disclosed stake in spot XRP exchange-traded funds at the end of 2025, owning about $154 million in shares, according to regulatory filings analyzed by Bloomberg Intelligence.
Analysts say retail investors likely hold a far larger share of the funds, because only institutions with more than $100 million in assets must report positions through 13F filings.
Bloomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart says in a report the top 30 reported holders controlled about $211 million in XRP ETF shares by year’s end.
Total inflows into the funds exceeded $1 billion by December 31, while assets under management climbed to roughly $1.44 billion last week.
Industry observers say strong demand from retail investors helped fuel the rapid growth. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted that many investors in the products appear to be dedicated XRP supporters who previously held the cryptocurrency directly. The asset has a large global retail base often referred to online as the “XRP Army.”
Spot XRP ETFs launched in July 2025 following earlier approvals for funds tracking bitcoin and ether. Asset managers including 21Shares, Bitwise Asset Management and Franklin Templeton issued the products, which allow investors to gain exposure to XRP’s price without directly holding the digital asset.
XRP prices rose about 45 percent during the fourth quarter of 2025 after a settlement between the cryptocurrency’s developer and the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The token later stabilized near $2.15. Analysts say the regulatory clarity boosted institutional confidence and accelerated the launch of investment products tied to the asset.
Wall Street banks and large financial firms have expanded their digital asset operations as interest grows. Goldman Sachs entered the crypto market in 2022 and now offers access to bitcoin ETFs, tokenized securities and digital asset research services. Other banks have also explored XRP-related activity, including payments pilots and custody services.
Crypto ETFs more broadly have expanded rapidly since the approval of spot bitcoin funds in early 2024. The largest bitcoin ETF, issued by BlackRock, manages tens of billions of dollars in assets, while funds from firms such as Fidelity Investments and Grayscale Investments have also attracted significant inflows. Ether ETFs followed in 2025, and regulators are reviewing applications for additional cryptocurrency funds tied to assets such as Solana and Litecoin.
Globally, regulators and exchanges are also expanding crypto-linked investment products. Markets in Europe, Canada, Brazil and parts of Asia already list several digital asset ETFs or futures products. Institutional investors including pensions and endowments have begun allocating small portions of portfolios to crypto funds as part of broader diversification strategies.
XRP itself occupies a distinctive position in the digital asset market. Developed by Ripple Labs, the token is used in cross-border payment systems that connect banks and financial institutions. The XRP Ledger processes transactions in seconds and is designed for high throughput with relatively low energy use.
XRP launched in 2012 as part of a blockchain payment network developed by Ripple. In 2020 the SEC filed a lawsuit alleging $1.3 billion in unregistered securities sales involving the token.
A US federal court ruled in 2023 that secondary market XRP sales were not securities transactions, and the case reached a settlement in 2025. The decision cleared a major regulatory hurdle and helped pave the way for exchange-traded funds tied to XRP, marking a broader expansion of crypto investment products on traditional financial markets.
