American financial technology firm Ripple, which is responsible for the development of the cryptocurrency XRP, has declared its fiscal first-quarter results.
The company, which was founded in 2012, is the largest holder of XRP, the third biggest cryptocurrency in the world, and is based in San Francisco, California. It has offices located around the world. The currency XRP, in itself, is decentralized. According to the Q1 2019 results, the company reported major growth in XRP sales, and that is positive news for the broader crypto market, which has been largely subdued this year.
XRP Sales
The sales of the billions of units of XRP held by the company is its biggest source of income, and in the first quarter, Ripple sold XRP for $169.42 million. However, it is far more important to note that out of those total sales, $61.93 million worth of XRP was bought by institutions and this is a clear indicator that some major players in the financial sector might finally be moving into crypto.
XRP is supposed to be used as a bridge currency for international payments, and so it is not surprising that institutions have bought the cryptocurrency. More importantly, the total sales reflect a rise of as much as 54% in XRP sales from the previous quarter.
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Beyond the Numbers
Although the quarter on quarter growth in sales is certainly a huge breakthrough for the company, it needs to be pointed out that growth in year-on-year sales in XRP is not significant at all. In the same quarter in 2018, Ripple sold $167.7 million worth of XRP and once compared with the figures of the last quarter, the overall growth is merely a little over 1%.
In addition to that, the volume of XRP trade on a global level declined on a quarter-on-quarter basis. In the previous quarter, the total traded volume was $54.82 billion, while in Q1 2019 it stood at $53.85 billion. This reflects a 2% drop in traded volume. However, it cannot be denied that it has not been a particularly great year for cryptocurrencies and hence, the quarter-on-quarter sales growth is being looked upon in a positive light.
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