XRP ETF Turns One: Price Down 60%, Inflows Hit $1.71B
The first U.S. XRP ETF (XRPR) marked its one-year anniversary on Sept 18, 2026 down roughly 60% — yet the broader U.S. spot XRP ETF complex has pulled in about $1.71B in net inflows. That gap between price and flows is the real story for ETF investors.
What happened: the first U.S. XRP ETF turns one, down ~60%
On September 18, 2026, the REX-Osprey XRP ETF (XRPR) — the first U.S. XRP ETF — passed its one-year anniversary, and the scorecard is brutal. The fund launched on September 18, 2025 at about $25.73 a share and traded near $10.57 at the anniversary, a decline of roughly 60% (KuCoin, Finbold).
The wrapper simply tracked its underlying: XRP itself fell from about $3.08 at launch to roughly $1.33, a ~59% drop, and remains around 64% below its all-time high (KuCoin). Put in dollar terms, a $1,000 stake placed in XRPR on day one was worth about $428.60 at the anniversary (cryptonews).
| First U.S. XRP ETF — one year | At launch (Sep 18 '25) | At anniversary | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| XRPR share price | ~$25.73 | ~$10.57 | ~−60% |
| XRP spot price | ~$3.08 | ~$1.33 | ~−59% |
| $1,000 invested in XRPR | $1,000 | ~$428.60 | ~−57% |
That a launch this poorly timed still exists — and still grows — is the part worth unpacking. For the backdrop on why regulated XRP access mattered in the first place, see our explainer on the XRP ETF approval and its institutional impact.
The divergence: price collapsed, but the money kept coming
Here is the tension a headline loss hides. Even as the price cratered, the broader U.S. spot XRP ETF complex has accumulated roughly $1.71 billion in cumulative net inflows and held about $1.39 billion in net assets around the anniversary — equal to only about 1.7% of XRP's market value, per SoSoValue data cited by KuCoin.
The inflows are steady, not spent. In the most recent weekly period, spot XRP ETFs pulled in a further $18.98M, led by the Bitwise XRP fund at +$9.30M and Franklin Templeton's XRPZ at +$6.69M (KuCoin).
That is the mechanically important fact: flows and price moved in opposite directions. Net creations mean authorized participants delivered XRP to the funds and minted new shares — the wrapper absorbed coin supply — even while the market marked that coin down. Inflows measure *dollars committed at prevailing prices*, not returns earned. A fund can hemorrhage NAV per share and still show a positive cumulative-inflow line, because the two count different things. It's the same accumulation-through-drawdown pattern spot Bitcoin funds showed at their lows — the concentration and creation mechanics we track for IBIT.
What it means for investors
Cumulative inflows are a demand gauge, not a performance scoreboard. The $1.71B figure tells you regulated buyers kept allocating into weakness; it tells you nothing about whether they are up. Anyone reading a rising inflow tally as a green light is conflating *participation* with *profit* — XRPR's ~60% drop is the reminder that the ETF wrapper transmits the asset's return, minus fees, with no floor of its own.
A first-mover premium is not a performance edge. XRPR earned distribution and brand as the first door into XRP, but being first is a marketing fact, not a returns fact. Newer entrants from Bitwise and Franklin Templeton are now capturing the marginal creation dollar, so the fee and liquidity contest matters more than launch order — the same structural read behind spot vs futures crypto ETFs.
Watch three mechanics from here. First, assets-to-market-cap: at ~1.7% of XRP's value, the ETF complex is not yet the marginal price-setter it is for Bitcoin, so flow prints move sentiment more than price. Second, premium/discount to NAV: thin, one-directional demand into a volatile coin is exactly where an ETF can drift from fair value if creations or redemptions outrun arbitrage — the dynamic in understanding NAV, premium and discount. Third, the pre-market open: XRP trades 24/7 while these funds price only in U.S. cash hours, so any overnight move is compressed into the first minutes of the session — the setup covered in our pre-market ETF trading strategy. Steady inflows into a down asset can build a longer-term demand base, but a one-year, ~60% drawdown is the record: flows are a vote of confidence, not a guarantee. None of this is investment advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is the first U.S. XRP ETF down after one year?
The REX-Osprey XRP ETF (XRPR), the first U.S. XRP ETF, is down roughly 60% since its September 18, 2025 launch — from about $25.73 to about $10.57 a share — tracking XRP's own ~59% slide from about $3.08 to about $1.33 over the same year.
If the price fell 60%, why do XRP ETFs show $1.71 billion of inflows?
Inflows count dollars committed at prevailing prices when new ETF shares are created, not the return those shares earned. The broader U.S. spot XRP ETF complex has drawn about $1.71B in cumulative net inflows and holds roughly $1.39B in assets, so buyers kept allocating even as NAV per share fell.
Which XRP ETFs are seeing the most inflows now?
In the most recent weekly period, U.S. spot XRP ETFs added about $18.98M, led by the Bitwise XRP fund at roughly $9.30M and Franklin Templeton's XRPZ at about $6.69M, per SoSoValue data cited by KuCoin.
Sources
- KuCoin — First U.S. XRP ETF Loses 60% in One Year — 2026-09-18
- KuCoin — XRP ETFs attract $1.71B in inflows, but price remains 64% below all-time high — 2026-09-18
- KuCoin — XRP Spot ETFs Recorded $18.98M in Net Inflows Last Week — 2026-09-15
- KuCoin — A $1,000 XRP investment in first U.S. XRP ETF now worth $428.60 — 2026-09-18
- Finbold — First U.S. XRP ETF turns one after losing 60% since launch — 2026-09-18
- cryptonews — First U.S. XRP ETF turns one after losing 60% since launch — 2026-09-18
Educational and informational only. Pre-Tick does not provide investment advice.
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