Standard Chartered’s head of digital assets research, Geoffrey Kendrick, has outlined a sharply optimistic outlook for XRP, citing recent regulatory developments and the emergence of spot exchange-traded funds tied to the token as key drivers of his forecast.
Kendrick’s projection follows the conclusion of Ripple’s long-running legal dispute with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, a case that had weighed on XRP for years and shaped broader regulatory uncertainty across the crypto market.
The legal battle began in December 2020, when the SEC accused Ripple and senior executives of conducting unregistered securities offerings through the sale of XRP tokens.
Ripple contested the claim, arguing that XRP functions as a digital currency rather than an investment contract.
A federal court delivered a mixed ruling in July 2023, determining that Ripple’s automated sales of XRP on public exchanges did not constitute securities transactions, while concluding that sales made directly to institutional investors violated securities laws.
Although the decision was widely viewed as favorable for Ripple, the SEC appealed portions of the ruling, extending the legal standoff.
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That process ended in August this year, when the regulator formally withdrew its appeal, bringing the dispute to a close and removing a major legal overhang from XRP.
Following the resolution, asset managers including Franklin Templeton, 21Shares, Bitwise, Canary and Grayscale launched spot XRP exchange-traded funds in the U.S., providing regulated market access to the token.
According to data from on-chain analytics platform SoSoValue, those products have collectively attracted $1.14 billion in net inflows as of Dec. 26.
Kendrick said the combination of regulatory clarity and growing institutional investment vehicles materially improves XRP’s long-term outlook. Based on those factors, he forecast that XRP could reach $8 by 2026.
At current market levels, XRP is trading near $1.88, implying an increase of roughly 330% from its present price if Kendrick’s target is realized.
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