By now, cryptocurrency investors should be familiar with the cyclical nature of the industry and its repeating pattern of booms and busts. With prices down by an eye-popping 43% over the last 12 months, XRP (XRP 0.71%) is on a downtrend that has erased much of the gains it enjoyed during Donald Trump’s presidential election campaign in late 2024.

That said, long-term ownership is the key to sustainable returns in financial markets because it helps investors ignore the short-term volatility and gives time for an asset’s fundamentals to shine through. Let’s discuss what the next 10 years might have in store for XRP as it attempts to regain the market’s attention and break into mainstream finance.

Rethinking the cryptocurrency market

Unlike stocks or bonds, cryptocurrencies are not tied to profit-generating real-world businesses, which makes them impossible to value based on traditional metrics like earnings. And while it is hard to pin down the exact factors that move the digital currency market, they don’t seem to perform as reliable safe-haven assets, contrary to earlier assumptions.

Safe havens are expected to maintain or increase in value during times of economic and geopolitical turmoil — such as Trump’s erratic trade policy and the war in Iran. But the cryptocurrency market hasn’t performed particularly well since the crisis started (much like stocks). And over the long term, investors should probably focus on the factors that drive risk asset prices, such as interest rates and institutional adoption.

Lower rates make borrowing easier, which increases the amount of cash in the economy and makes people more willing to take risks — benefiting the crypto demand. Meanwhile, attracting institutional adoption will be XRP’s key to standing out from the thousands of other options.

XRP’s push into mainstream finance

XRP is unique because of the visibility of its development team, Ripple Labs. While other major cryptocurrency developers tend to keep a lower profile (Bitcoin‘s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, is famously anonymous), Ripple Labs is seemingly glad to make headlines.

Recently, these included winning a partial victory in an SEC lawsuit that sought to regulate its previous token sales under securities law. The settlement resulted in a $50 million fine, but Ripple’s token sales to retail investors weren’t classified as securities sales. Ripple is also working hard to break into mainstream finance. And in December, it earned preliminary conditional approval to create Ripple National Trust Bank, which will allow it to operate as a federally regulated financial institution in the U.S.

Image source: Getty Images.

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There are several benefits to this strategy. For starters, it gives Ripple Labs (and its associated tokens like XRP) a higher level of trust and legitimacy, which is crucial in an industry known for controversy. Furthermore, it makes it easier for the developer to support and develop additional assets like the stablecoin Ripple USD.

While Ripple USD is a separate asset from XRP, they share the same blockchain ledger. Furthermore, Ripple USD transaction fees are paid in XRP, boosting network activity and potentially reducing the XRP supply because a small percentage of all transactions made on the network are removed from circulation through a process called burning.

Where will XRP be in 10 years?

XRP’s developers will have immense influence over the trajectory of the asset over the next 10 years and beyond. And so far, their influence looks like a good thing after a series of regulatory wins that can help increase demand for the asset and boost its legitimacy. Positive macroeconomic trends like falling Federal Reserve interest rates could also eventually help the cryptocurrency industry as a whole.

The recent dip in XRP prices looks like a long-term buying opportunity. That said, the market is clearly in a downtrend. And no one wants to accidentally catch a falling knife, so it might make sense to wait for some signs that sentiment is improving before considering a position.

Kalshi Margin Trading Approved

The NFA filing lists Kinetic Markets as both an FCM and swap firm. Bloomberg was the first to report on the NFA filing. Kalshi Inc. holds a 10% or greater financial interest in the entity. Co-founders Tarek Mansour and Luana Lopes Lara are named as indirect owners, with Lior Samuel Hirschfeld serving as CEO of Kinetic, Sam Rosner as CFO, and Joshua Andrew Beardsley as chief compliance officer.

Until now, Kalshi operated on a fully collateralized model, requiring traders to post 100% of a contract’s value before entering a position. Margin trading changes that. Participants will be able to hold positions by posting only a fraction of the total value as collateral, freeing up capital for other use.

Mansour told attendees at a recent Kalshi Research conference that margin access will open to institutional investors first, hedge funds, prop desks, and similar firms, before any retail rollout is considered. No firm launch date has been announced.

The FCM approval connects directly to Kalshi’s existing status as a CFTC-designated contract market for event contracts, one of the first exchanges to hold that designation. The company filed for FCM registration in late 2025, and the NFA confirmed the approval this week.

Kalshi’s push into institutional access has been building for months. In early February 2026, the company was reported to be seeking CFTC approval specifically to attract capital from professional trading operations. The FCM registration gives those firms the leverage framework they need to participate at scale.

The report notes that recent partnership announcements reflect the same direction. Kalshi signed a clearing and infrastructure deal with Fidelity Information Services, announced a data integration with Ark Invest on March 26, 2026, and completed an earlier integration with Tradeweb in 2026.

Monthly trading volumes on the platform have exceeded $10 billion in recent periods. The company’s valuation stands at roughly $22 billion. Kalshi currently offers contracts on politics, sports, crypto prices, weather outcomes, and other real-world events.

Founded in 2020, Kalshi spent years in regulatory proceedings before the CFTC approved it as the first dedicated event contract exchange. The platform has also faced state-level legal challenges in Tennessee and Nevada over sports betting jurisdiction, but federal courts have sided with CFTC oversight of the contracts.

Onlookers on social media described the FCM registration as a “major hurdle” for Kalshi. Alongside this, it will benefit institutional participants who want short exposure to event-driven outcomes, positions that were difficult to construct efficiently under the old collateral structure.

“Solving for the Ouroborus of Margin & Jump Risk is how you get adoption by players who have to deploy at a large notiona amount,” one person wrote on X.

How quickly institutional adoption follows will depend on how Kalshi structures margin requirements and which contracts it makes eligible. The company has indicated the feature may not apply to all event contracts at launch.

Kinetic Markets is currently listed as an inactive NFA member, meaning it is not independently conducting commodity interest business. Its primary function is to support Kalshi’s expanded trading infrastructure. Further details on the rollout timeline are expected in the coming weeks.

FAQ 🔎

• What is Kinetic Markets LLC? Kinetic Markets LLC is a Kalshi affiliate registered by the NFA as a futures commission merchant on March 24, 2026, to enable margin trading on the platform.
• How does margin trading work on Kalshi? Instead of posting 100% of a contract’s value, margin traders post a fraction of the position as collateral, improving capital efficiency.
• Who can access Kalshi margin trading first? Margin trading will initially be available to institutional investors such as hedge funds, with retail access potentially following at a later date.
• Is Kalshi regulated by the CFTC? Yes, Kalshi operates as a CFTC-designated contract market, one of the first exchanges approved specifically for event contracts.

• Nonprofits can either convert crypto donations to cash immediately or hold them as an investment.
• Cryptocurrency is treated as a property donation by the IRS, not as a currency donation.
• Experts advise nonprofits to seek professional financial guidance before accepting and managing cryptocurrency.

Nonprofits and cryptocurrency donations are increasingly being used to put old-fashioned money in the bank.

Cryptocurrency valuations over time are such that more nonprofits are opening up to accepting crypto and converting it to cash, or holding on to it for hoped-for long-term value increases.

Principal factors that have held back nonprofits’ acceptance of crypto donations are uncertainty about how it works, valuation volatility, tax implications and regulatory considerations. But the strains on traditional fundraising and the potential gain nonprofits can realize from crypto are driving them to explore — or accept — this nontraditional funding source. Other issues are not having a vehicle in place to accept crypto, and many nonprofits as regards crypto haven’t updated their internal investment policies and donation acceptance policies.

Crypto’s name is based on combining cryptography (encrypted codes) with currency. There is no government central bank or other authority creating crypto. An internet artificial intelligence overview explains crypto creation as follows, and don’t be surprised if it seems almost a foreign language: “Cryptocurrency is created through decentralized digital processes, primarily mining or validation, rather than being minted by a central bank. New coins are generated as rewards for securing the blockchain network, verifying transactions, and solving complex mathematical problems, using specialized computer hardware.”

Crypto valuation has something in common with the plush toys called Beanie Babies. Beginning in 1993, Beanie Babies were a craze for a short time. As the idea of a collectible toy spread, demand grew; scarcity and restrained production drove costs higher. Long lines formed at stores so the newest ones could be grabbed as they went on shelves. Today, many Beanie Babies can be bought on eBay for $5.99, though some rare, mint-condition Babies sell for thousands. Why the high and the low? That’s what people are willing to pay.

Basically, crypto has value because it’s believed and accepted to have value. Key valuation factors include supply and demand and crypto’s controlled, decentralized nature outside the traditional fiat currency structure. There are many forms of crypto; Bitcoin, the largest crypto variation, has seen spectacular gains in value as well as encountering substantial valuation declines.

Bitcoin debuted in 2009 with essentially no value. On Oct. 6, 2025, Bitcoin reached its high-water mark of $126,198.07. At 2 p.m. on March 11, Bitcoin was at $70,268.35. Bankrate.com explains Bitcoin’s value driver: “The price of Bitcoin is notoriously driven by sentiment. When the market shifts to its ‘greed’ phase, Bitcoin soars amid the utopian promises and speculators dismiss the risks of an asset that generates no cash flow. In the ‘fear’ phase, Bitcoin’s price seems to find no traction, as sellers push its price lower amid bad news or general market malaise.” In short, Bitcoin, or any crypto, is worth what the buyer will pay.

The IRS treats crypto as a digital asset, along with stablecoin (stable because it’s tied to stable assets like gold or the U.S. dollar) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs, one-of-a-kind cryptographic tokens on a blockchain, that can’t be replicated.) Nonprofits receiving crypto donations must treat them for tax purposes as property donations rather than currency donations. The IRS’s “Frequently asked questions on virtual currency transactions” page lists IRS notices and links to pages dealing with crypto’s tax implications.

A nonprofit with crypto donations can’t go down to the bank and hand them to a teller to cash in the donations. Financial institutions use third-party processors, just as a nonprofit would use an exchange or processor to make the conversion. The National Council of Nonprofits provides a detailed look at crypto donations and conversion in “What Your Nonprofit Needs to Know About Cryptocurrency Donations.”

Nonprofits can seek to convert their crypto donations to cash as soon as the donation is in hand. If Bitcoin, the amount, even if well off the high, will still likely be substantial. Other types, not so much. The question confronting every nonprofit looking at a crypto donation is whether to sell or buy and hold? The decision depends substantially on the organization’s immediate needs — and if they’re willing to bet the value will increase — because that’s what it is, a bet.

Nonprofits are best advised to seek the advice of accounting or finance professionals fluent and experienced in cryptocurrency language and disposition strategies, and who walk nonprofit leaders through the substance of crypto merits and demerits. The outcome will give a stronger basis for decisions on if, when and how much money from a crypto donation will actually go into the bank.

Samuel French is president of the accounting and business consulting firm Rodefer Moss & Co. PLLC, headquartered in Knoxville. The company’s website is rodefermoss.com.