After hitting highs well above $0.55 in Mid-June, the highest for XRP since Late 2022, the price of XRP has been somewhat on the decline. Currently, XRP sits just above 48 cents and is the only top ten coin in the red. A reason for the lacklustre performance may be the ongoing legal battle with the SEC, where a decision by Judge Torres is expected any day now.
However, a report by Bloomberg suggests there could be other reasons for the below-par performance of XRP. According to the report and citing unnamed sources, Citigroup Inc. is presently reevaluating its collaboration with the Swiss fintech firm Metaco to custody digital assets. The collaboration between Citigroup and Metaco was first revealed roughly a year ago.
Ripple Labs, combating the US Securities and Exchange Commission in court for years, had paid $250 million to acquire Metaco. It’s unclear whether Ripple’s purchase of Metaco has anything to do with Citigroup’s reconsideration of the collaboration. According to Ripple, Metaco will continue to run independently under its current CEO, Adrien Treccani.
Last year, Metaco also established partnerships with BNP Paribas SA and Forge, Societe Generale SA’s division for digital assets. According to Bloomberg, while BNP Paribas did not comment on the collaboration, Societe Generale confirmed their relationship with Metaco was still active and operational.
Ripple purchased Metaco as part of a strategic drive to diversify the company’s offerings beyond payments. With the acquisition, Ripple could allow its customers to tokenize, settle, and offer custody services for various assets.
When Ripple took over Metaco in May, CEO Brad Garlinghouse outlined the high hopes the company seemed to have in the acquisition. Garlinghouse said: “Through the strength of our balance sheet and financial position, Ripple will continue pressing our advantage in the areas critical to crypto infrastructure. Bringing on Metaco is monumental for our growing product suite and expanding global footprint.”
Regarding XRP price, whether the news about Citigroup and Metaco will deter investors in the long run, remains to be seen. A decision in the lawsuit may likely serve much more as a catalyst of any price movement, with some pundits expecting solid performance in case of a Ripple win.
However, given the magnitude of the case, many legal commentators seem to have already factored in that no matter how the judge decides, the case will likely come in front of appellate courts and perhaps even as high as the Supreme Court of the United States. In this case, the price of XRP could remain suppressed for an indefinite amount of time.
