XRPI ($6.98) and XRPR ($10.61) Trade 56% and 52% Below Their Highs as First-Mover Funds Lose the Fee Battle to 0.19% Spot Products

The two longest-running XRP exchange-traded funds in the United States ended Monday, October 19, 2026, almost unchanged after giving back their opening gains. The Volatility Shares XRP ETF (NASDAQ: XRPI) traded at $6.98 at 3:32 p.m. ET, up $0.005, or 0.072%. It opened at $7.04, which was also its session high, and fell to a low of $6.94 before stabilizing. The REX-Osprey XRP ETF (Cboe: XRPR) traded at $10.61 at 1:42 p.m. ET, up $0.0095, or 0.09%, from its $10.60 prior close. It opened at its session high of $10.77 and slid to a low of $10.61, where it sat at the time of the quote.

The intraday shape tells the story. Both funds opened about 1% above their prior closes, reflecting XRP’s overnight gain, and both lost that premium through the U.S. session. XRPI fell 1.42% from open to low, and XRPR fell 1.49%. XRP itself traded at $1.312 in the late morning, up 1.19% on the day, inside a 24-hour range of $1.26 to $1.31. The fade in both funds shows XRP gave back most of its early gain during U.S. trading hours.

The thesis of this analysis is narrow. XRPI and XRPR were the first ways U.S. investors could buy XRP exposure in a brokerage account, and both launched in 2025 before any spot XRP ETF existed. Six spot XRP ETFs now trade, with expense ratios as low as 0.19%. XRPI charges 1.68% and XRPR 0.75%. The first-mover advantage has turned into a cost disadvantage.

The two funds are also built differently from the spot products. XRPI holds XRP futures, which brings roll costs and tracking differences. XRPR holds XRP directly and through a European exchange-traded product, wrapped in an investment-company structure. Neither holds XRP the way the spot trusts do.

Both funds trade well below their highs. XRPI sits 56.5% below its 52-week high of $16.06 and 28.8% above its low of $5.42. XRPR sits 52.3% below its 52-week high of $22.26 and 31.0% above its low of $8.10. Those drawdowns reflect XRP’s own fall from its $3.66 record.

The near-term direction depends on XRP, not on fund mechanics. XRP needs a close above $1.38 to turn its trend higher and faces support at $1.25.

Two Funds, Two Structures: Futures Against Spot

XRPI and XRPR give investors XRP exposure through very different means, and the difference matters for returns.

XRPI, launched on May 22, 2025, by Volatility Shares, is a futures-based fund. Under normal circumstances, it invests at least 80% of its net assets in XRP-linked instruments, mainly XRP futures contracts. The fund is non-diversified. It does not hold XRP directly. Instead, it buys futures contracts that expire each month and rolls them forward by selling the expiring contract and buying the next one.

That structure creates tracking differences. When later-dated futures trade above near-dated contracts, a market condition known as contango, each roll costs money because the fund sells cheaper contracts and buys more expensive ones. Over months, roll costs can cause a futures fund to underperform the underlying asset even if both start and end at the same price. The fund also holds cash and Treasury bills as collateral, which earn interest that partly offsets those costs.

XRPR, launched on September 18, 2025, by REX Shares and Osprey Funds, was marketed as the first U.S.-listed ETF to offer exposure to spot XRP. It trades on the Cboe BZX exchange. Its investment objective was revised effective May 10, 2026, to seek results matching the performance of XRP before fees and expenses.

XRPR holds XRP directly through a Cayman Islands subsidiary and invests in the CoinShares Physical XRP exchange-traded product listed in Europe. As of October 9, it held 21,260,382 XRP worth $29.43 million, or 59.83% of assets, and CoinShares Physical XRP worth $19.75 million, or 40.14%. The fund held four positions in total.

The two-part structure means XRPR’s returns depend on XRP’s price and on how closely the CoinShares product tracks XRP. It also means XRPR pays a fee on its own and carries the cost embedded in the CoinShares product.

The spot XRP trusts that launched later hold XRP directly in custody, with no futures and no fund-of-funds layer. That simpler design is part of why they charge less.

The Fee Gap: 1.68% and 0.75% Against 0.19%

Cost is the most important difference between XRPI, XRPR and the newer spot products. As of October 13, 2026, six spot XRP ETFs traded in the U.S. The Franklin XRP ETF (XRPZ) charges 0.19%, the 21Shares XRP ETF (TOXR) 0.30%, the Bitwise XRP ETF 0.34%, the Grayscale XRP Trust ETF (GXRP) 0.35%, the Canary XRP ETF (XRPC) 0.50% and REX-Osprey’s XRPR 0.75%.

XRPR is the most expensive spot-category fund. Its 0.75% fee is 56 basis points above Franklin’s and almost four times higher in relative terms. On a $10,000 position, XRPR costs $75 a year against $19 for XRPZ.

XRPI sits in the strategy category alongside leveraged and income products. Its 1.68% expense ratio is 149 basis points above Franklin’s and almost nine times higher. On a $10,000 position, XRPI costs $168 a year against $19 for XRPZ. Over five years, the difference compounds to more than $700 on that position, before any futures roll costs.

The strategy category includes several products at even higher costs. The Amplify XRP 3% Monthly Option Income ETF (XRPM) charges 0.75% and writes call options on XRP ETFs to generate income. The ProShares Ultra XRP ETF (UXRP) charges 2.43%, the Teucrium 2x Long Daily XRP ETF (XXRP) 2.77% and Volatility Shares’ own 2x XRP ETF (XRPT) 3.13%. Those leveraged products target twice XRP’s daily return.

Against that group, XRPI’s 1.68% looks moderate. Against the spot trusts, it looks expensive. An investor who wants simple long exposure to XRP pays far less in a spot fund.

The fee gap matters more in a falling market. XRP has lost 52% over the past year, from $2.50 to $1.312. A fund charging 1.68% loses that fee on top of the price decline. In a sideways market, the fee becomes the main driver of underperformance.

Fund Size: $112 Million and $49 Million

Both funds are small relative to the spot XRP category. XRPI held $112.38 million in net assets in mid-October, with a net asset value of $7.38 per share at that point. XRPR held $49.07 million on October 9, with 4,350,000 shares outstanding and a net asset value of $11.31.

The spot trusts are far larger. U.S. spot XRP ETFs held 1.19 billion XRP worth $1.54 billion as of mid-October. Bitwise’s fund led with 417.7 million XRP, followed by Franklin’s XRPZ with 301.8 million and Canary’s XRPC with 243.5 million.

The comparison shows how the market moved after spot products arrived. XRPI and XRPR together hold $161.45 million, about 10% of the spot category’s assets. Investors who wanted XRP exposure before spot funds launched used XRPI and XRPR. After spot funds launched with lower fees, most new money went to them.

XRPR’s holdings have been stable. It held 23,317,382 XRP and 427,680 shares of the CoinShares product on May 31, 2026, with $52.27 million in net assets. By October 9, it held 21,260,382 XRP and $49.07 million in assets. The XRP count fell 8.8% over four months, while assets fell 6.1%, reflecting both modest redemptions and price changes.

Size affects trading costs. XRPR’s median bid-ask spread over 30 days stood at 0.97% as of October 9, meaning an investor buying and immediately selling would lose close to 1% on the spread alone. Larger spot funds typically trade with spreads a fraction of that. XRPI’s average daily volume of 252,895 shares provides more liquidity than XRPR, but still far less than the largest spot products.

Small funds also face closure risk. When assets stay low and fees fail to cover costs, issuers sometimes close or merge funds. Neither fund has announced such plans, but their size relative to cheaper competitors is a factor long-term holders should monitor.

XRP’s Price: $1.312 and a 52% Annual Decline

Both funds’ prices depend on XRP. XRP traded at $1.312 in the late morning on Monday, up 1.19%, with a market capitalization of $82.82 billion and a circulating supply of 63.13 billion tokens. Its 24-hour range ran from $1.26 to $1.31.

The longer trend is negative. XRP has fallen 7.10% over the past seven days and 52% over the past year, from $2.50 a year ago. It trades 64% below its all-time high of $3.66, reached in 2025. To return to that level, XRP would need to rise 179%.

The funds’ prices track that decline. XRPI’s 52-week high of $16.06 came when XRP traded well above $2. Its current $6.98 reflects XRP at $1.312. The ratio between XRPI and XRP stands at 5.32 at Monday’s prices. XRPR’s 52-week high of $22.26 and low of $8.10 show a similar path.

XRPR’s inception price provides perspective. The fund launched at $25.73 in September 2025. At $10.61, it has lost 58.8% since launch. It started 2026 at $14.98 and has lost 29.2% year to date.

XRP’s technical setup is weak. The coin trades above its 200-day simple moving average of $1.28 but below all its shorter moving averages, which act as resistance. Sell orders concentrate above $1.30, which explains why Monday’s rally faded during U.S. trading. First support sits at $1.29 and $1.284, then $1.25.

The upside trigger sits at $1.38. A close above that level would break the short-term downtrend and likely lift XRPI toward $7.35 and XRPR toward $11.15 at current ratios. A close below $1.25 would put XRP’s 200-day average at risk and push XRPI toward $6.65 and XRPR toward $10.10.

ETF Flows: The First Weekly Outflow After 13 Weeks

Flows into spot XRP ETFs turned negative last week for the first time in more than three months. In the week from October 12 to October 16, the funds recorded a net outflow of 1.8 million XRP, worth about $2.3 million. That ended a streak of 13 consecutive weekly inflows. On October 16 alone, the funds lost 2.84 million XRP.

The outflow was small relative to the category’s 1.19 billion XRP in holdings, equal to 0.15%. Its significance lies in the break of the streak. Thirteen weeks of steady inflows had provided consistent demand for XRP through the ETF channel.

The flow data matches the broader crypto ETF picture. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs lost $228.6 million last week, spot Ethereum ETFs $320.1 million and spot Solana ETFs recorded ten straight sessions of outflows. Institutional investors reduced crypto exposure across products as Treasury yields rose and technology stocks sold off.

Supply pressure adds to the challenge. Ripple holds 31.40 billion XRP in escrow and releases 200 million to 400 million XRP into circulation each month. Spot ETFs have been absorbing about 109 million XRP a month. When ETF demand slows or reverses, the escrow releases face less absorption.

Exchange reserves confirm rising supply. XRP held on exchanges reached 11.81 billion on October 17, the 99th percentile of the past year. Tracked exchange wallets held 22.06 billion XRP, up 1.76 billion in two weeks from 20.30 billion on October 3. Tokens moving to exchanges are often being positioned for sale.

Derivatives markets show reduced leverage. Binance open interest in XRP fell 15.8% between October 4 and October 17. Long liquidations reached $25.7 million on October 7 and 8. Less leverage reduces the risk of forced selling but also reduces the fuel for sharp rallies.

XRPI’s Futures Mechanics and Tracking

XRPI’s futures structure makes its returns different from XRP’s in ways that matter for holders. The fund holds XRP futures contracts that expire monthly. Each month, it sells the expiring contract and buys the next one.

The cost of rolling depends on the shape of the futures curve. When later-dated contracts trade above near-dated ones, the fund pays a premium on each roll. That premium reflects the cost of carrying XRP exposure forward, including interest rates. With U.S. short-term rates near 4%, carry costs in crypto futures markets tend to be positive, meaning futures funds pay to roll.

The fund earns interest on its collateral. XRPI holds cash and Treasury bills to back its futures positions. With Treasury bill yields above 3.75%, that interest partly offsets roll costs. The net effect depends on how steep the futures curve is relative to Treasury yields.

The tracking gap shows up over time. On days when XRP moves sharply, XRPI generally follows within a narrow range. Over months, roll costs and the 1.68% fee accumulate. A futures fund held for a year typically underperforms the spot asset by the sum of its fee and net roll costs.

XRPI’s net asset value relationship matters too. In mid-October, its market price of $7.24 traded below its $7.38 net asset value, a 1.9% discount. Discounts and premiums can appear when futures markets and the fund’s share price respond to news at different times, particularly around U.S. market hours versus 24-hour crypto trading.

Those mechanics make XRPI a better tool for short-term trading than long-term holding. Traders who want XRP exposure within a brokerage account for days or weeks may accept the costs. Investors holding for years face a structural headwind compared with spot funds.

XRPI also offers something spot funds lack. Futures-based products have been available in some account types and platforms before spot products. For investors restricted to certain fund types, XRPI may be the only option.

XRPR’s Hybrid Structure: Direct XRP Plus a European ETP

XRPR’s structure solves one problem and creates another. When it launched in September 2025, no U.S. spot XRP ETF existed. REX Shares and Osprey Funds built XRPR under the Investment Company Act of 1940, the framework that governs mutual funds and most ETFs, rather than as a commodity trust under the Securities Act of 1933, which is how spot crypto trusts are structured.

That framework imposes diversification and custody rules that prevent a fund from holding 100% of its assets in a single digital asset directly. XRPR’s solution was to hold XRP through a Cayman Islands subsidiary and to invest the rest in another XRP-backed product. The fund held 59.83% of its assets in direct XRP and 40.14% in the CoinShares Physical XRP product as of October 9.

The structure has tax implications. Investment-company funds typically distribute gains and income to shareholders each year. Commodity trusts pass through tax treatment differently. Investors should check how XRPR’s distributions affect their own tax situation.

The structure also adds a layer of cost. The CoinShares product charges its own management fee, embedded in its price. XRPR’s 0.75% fee is charged on top. Investors effectively pay two fees on 40% of XRPR’s portfolio.

XRPR’s discount and premium history shows it generally trades close to its net asset value. On October 9, its market price of $11.28 sat 0.25% below its $11.31 net asset value. In 2026, the fund traded at a premium on 24 days and a discount on 37 days in the first quarter, a premium on 35 days and a discount on 27 days in the second quarter, and a premium on 31 days and a discount on 33 days in the third quarter.

That balanced record shows the arbitrage mechanism works. Market makers create and redeem shares to keep the price near net asset value, even with the fund’s two-part holdings.

The question for XRPR is whether its structure still offers enough value now that spot funds exist. For most investors seeking simple XRP exposure, the answer depends on whether the investment-company wrapper suits their account type.

Monday in Context: XRP Fades With Crypto Into the U.S. Session

Monday’s session showed the pattern of the past two weeks. XRP rallied overnight, with Asian and European trading pushing it toward $1.33. Both XRP funds opened near their highs, reflecting that gain. During U.S. trading, sellers returned and XRP gave back most of its rise, leaving both funds near flat.

The broader crypto market moved similarly. Bitcoin traded at $82,345.89, up 1.57%, while Ethereum rose 1.86% to $2,419.82 and Solana 1.9% to $104.47. XRP’s 1.19% gain lagged the larger coins, consistent with its weaker relative trend.

The technology rally in equities supported crypto in the morning. The Nasdaq rose 1.67% and the S&P 500 0.85%, with Nvidia, Intel, Amazon and Tesla leading. Crypto has traded closely with technology stocks through October, rising and falling with AI-related shares.

Macro pressure capped the gains. The 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 5.13%, near its highest since 2002. Higher yields raise the opportunity cost of holding assets that pay no income, including XRP. The Federal Reserve holds its rate at 3.75% to 4.00% after a September hike, with markets pricing a 92% chance of another hike by December.

XRP-specific factors weighed further. Exchange reserves at one-year highs, the end of the spot ETF inflow streak and steady escrow releases created supply pressure that the morning’s demand could not overcome.

The intraday reversal matters for both funds. XRPI and XRPR trade only during U.S. market hours, while XRP trades around the clock. Overnight moves show up in the funds’ opening prices, but the funds’ closing prices depend on where XRP sits at 4 p.m. ET. On days like Monday, when XRP rallies overnight and fades during U.S. hours, fund holders capture less of the move than the 24-hour XRP chart suggests.

Ripple’s Ecosystem: RLUSD, Tokenized Assets and Escrow

XRP’s long-term case rests on the growth of the XRP Ledger and Ripple’s business. Several indicators show progress even as the price has fallen.

Ripple’s stablecoin, RLUSD, has reached a $2.43 billion supply. Stablecoins issued on the XRP Ledger and other networks give the ecosystem a dollar-denominated settlement asset, which Ripple targets at cross-border payments and institutional settlement.

Tokenized real-world assets on the XRP Ledger have reached $278 million. Those include tokenized Treasury bills, money-market funds and other traditional financial instruments issued on the blockchain. Growth in tokenized assets brings transaction activity to the ledger and supports demand for XRP as the network’s fee and bridge asset.

The escrow structure shapes supply. Ripple holds 31.40 billion XRP in escrow, released in monthly tranches. Each month, up to 1 billion XRP becomes available, and Ripple typically returns most of it to escrow, releasing 200 million to 400 million into circulation. That steady release adds supply that buyers must absorb.

The balance between that supply and ETF demand matters for prices. At 109 million XRP a month, ETF absorption covers 27% to 55% of the monthly release. The remaining supply must find buyers in spot markets. During the 13-week inflow streak, ETF demand helped offset escrow releases. With flows turning negative, the escrow overhang becomes more visible.

The regulatory backdrop has stabilized. A federal judge ruled in July 2023 that Ripple’s sales of XRP on crypto exchanges were not unregistered securities sales, which cleared the path for XRP ETFs. The approval of six spot XRP ETFs and five strategy products shows the regulatory question has largely been resolved.

Comparing XRPI and XRPR to Spot Alternatives

For investors choosing among XRP funds, the decision comes down to cost, structure, size and trading needs.

On cost, Franklin’s XRPZ at 0.19% leads the spot category. The 21Shares, Bitwise and Grayscale products follow at 0.30% to 0.35%. Canary’s XRPC charges 0.50%. XRPR at 0.75% is the most expensive spot-category fund, and XRPI at 1.68% charges the most among non-leveraged products.

On structure, the spot trusts hold XRP directly in custody, with no futures, no subsidiary and no fund-of-funds layer. XRPR holds XRP partly directly and partly through a European product. XRPI holds futures.

On size, Bitwise’s fund leads with 417.7 million XRP, Franklin’s with 301.8 million and Canary’s with 243.5 million. XRPI’s $112.38 million and XRPR’s $49.07 million place them at the smaller end. Larger funds generally offer tighter spreads and lower closure risk.

On liquidity, XRPI’s average daily volume of 252,895 shares provides adequate trading for most retail investors. XRPR’s 0.97% median spread is wide for an ETF and adds cost for frequent traders.

On tracking, spot trusts should track XRP most closely, minus fees. XRPR should track closely, minus fees and the embedded cost of its CoinShares holding. XRPI tracks less closely over time because of roll costs.

The case for XRPI and XRPR rests on specific needs. XRPI suits traders who want futures-based exposure, perhaps for accounts or platforms that permit futures funds but not spot trusts. XRPR suits investors who prefer an investment-company structure for tax or account reasons. For straightforward long-term XRP exposure, the lower-cost spot funds offer better value.

The trend in assets confirms that investors are choosing on cost. Since spot funds launched, most new XRP ETF money has gone to them rather than to XRPI and XRPR.

Scenarios: XRP $1.38 Trigger, $1.25 Floor

The base case through the October 28 Fed decision keeps XRP between $1.25 and $1.38. That scenario requires Bitcoin to hold above $80,000, the 10-year Treasury yield to stay between 5.00% and 5.20% and spot XRP ETF flows to remain near flat. Under those conditions, XRPI trades between $6.65 and $7.35 and XRPR between $10.10 and $11.15, tracking XRP minus fees.

The upside case needs XRP above $1.38. A close above that level would break the short-term downtrend and target $1.41, then $1.50. That move would likely require a renewed spot ETF inflow streak, a Bitcoin breakout above $84,500, a dovish Fed hold and falling exchange reserves. At $1.50, XRPI would trade near $7.98, a 14.3% gain, and XRPR near $12.13, a 14.3% gain at current ratios.

The downside case starts below $1.25. A close under that level would break XRP’s 200-day average at $1.28 and open the way to $1.20, then $1.15. That move would likely accompany continued ETF outflows, a hawkish Fed, rising exchange reserves and a Bitcoin break below $80,000. At $1.15, XRPI would trade near $6.12, a 12.3% decline, and XRPR near $9.30, a 12.3% decline. The 52-week lows at $5.42 for XRPI and $8.10 for XRPR would come into view if XRP fell toward $1.02.

The October 30 Bitcoin options expiry adds risk. With $10.7 billion to $11.3 billion in Bitcoin options expiring and a max-pain level between $78,000 and $79,000, crypto prices could drift lower into that date, pulling XRP with them.

Verdict: Hold for Traders, Spot Funds for Long-Term Holders

The setup for XRPI and XRPR on October 19 is a Hold with a bearish tilt, driven by XRP’s own trend. XRPI traded at $6.98, up 0.072%, and XRPR at $10.61, up 0.09%, after both faded from opening highs. XRPI sits 56.5% below its 52-week high and XRPR 52.3% below, reflecting XRP’s 52% decline over the past year to $1.312.

The bearish factors are XRP-specific and macro. Spot XRP ETFs recorded their first weekly outflow after 13 straight inflow weeks. Exchange reserves sit at the 99th percentile of the past year. Ripple’s escrow releases outpace ETF absorption. XRP trades below all its short-term moving averages. A 10-year Treasury yield at 5.13% and a Fed likely to hike again weigh on all crypto assets.

The supportive factors are structural. XRP holds above its 200-day average at $1.28. RLUSD supply has reached $2.43 billion and tokenized assets on the XRP Ledger $278 million. Spot ETFs hold 1.19 billion XRP, and the week’s outflow equaled just 0.15% of holdings.

The fund-specific verdict is clear. XRPI’s 1.68% fee and futures structure make it a tool for short-term trading, not long-term holding. XRPR’s 0.75% fee and two-layer structure make it the most expensive spot-category fund. Investors seeking long-term XRP exposure pay less in Franklin’s XRPZ at 0.19% or the other spot trusts at 0.30% to 0.50%.

For existing holders, the trading levels follow XRP. A close above $1.38 targets XRPI at $7.35 to $7.98 and XRPR at $11.15 to $12.13. A close below $1.25 targets XRPI at $6.12 to $6.65 and XRPR at $9.30 to $10.10. The October 28 Fed decision is the event most likely to decide which way XRP breaks.

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