The Ripple (XRP) network’s XRP Ledger (XRPL) has reported a significant decline in transaction volume, with March’s figures hitting the lowest point in several years. By late March, the network observed a 65% decrease from February’s total, with the monthly transaction value dropping to 12 billion XRP. This slump comes after XRPL experienced a peak in January with a record-breaking 691 billion XRP in transactions, even withstanding an attempted large-scale illicit transfer.
Network Activity Diverges from User Growth
Despite this downturn, March saw a 68% rise in the creation of new unique addresses on the ledger, suggesting a growing user base. However, this increase in new addresses did not translate into higher transactional activity. The blockchain’s daily transactions fell to the lowest count for the year on March 7, recording merely 686,000 transactions.
Costs Climb as Market Sentiment Shifts
Concurrent with the uptick in new addresses, the cost to transact on XRPL has also escalated. As of March 7, the average fee reached 0.0037 XRP, marking a striking 131% jump since the start of the year. Yet, the volume of transactions, both in terms of frequency and value, did not mirror this growth. After a brief spike in the token’s futures market transaction volume on March 12, the daily figure has dipped by 6%, signaling a possible shift in market sentiment and trading behavior.
This decline in ledger activity, contrasted with rising costs and an increase in new participants, paints a complex picture of XRPL’s current state. Analysts suggest that while the network is attracting new users, the lowered transaction volume might reflect a more cautious approach by existing users or a general market downturn influencing behavior on the ledger.
This contraction in activity and the subsequent market reactions will be closely scrutinized by investors and industry observers as they assess XRPL’s performance in the context of broader cryptocurrency market trends.