Headline: Arizona Bill and XRPL RWA Surge Bring Long-Discussed $589 XRP Target Back Into View — But Capital Flows Remain Key Lead: February 18, 2026 felt anything but ordinary for XRP. While the token’s price has been soft, a string of structural developments — from state-level policy moves to accelerating tokenization on the XRPL — have reignited conversation around the oft-mocked $589 price projection. Taken together, these fundamentals suggest market positioning is shifting beneath the surface, even if sustained capital inflows are still required to turn speculation into reality. What happened in Arizona On February 16, Arizona’s SB1649 cleared the Senate Finance Committee with a 4–2 “Do Pass” recommendation. Introduced by Senator Finchem during the Fifty-seventh Legislature’s Second Regular Session, the bill would create a Digital Assets Strategic Reserve Fund under section 41-181, placing authority with the State Treasurer to hold digital assets seized or appropriated into a managed reserve. Crucially for the XRP ecosystem, the bill explicitly lists Ripple (XRP) alongside Bitcoin, Digibyte, stablecoins and other qualifying digital assets in its statutory definition. That is not mere symbolism: spelling out XRP in the bill effectively places it on the same footing as Bitcoin within this proposed state-level reserve framework. The legislation also gives the State Treasurer limited authority to invest and potentially loan digital assets, and specifies strict custody standards — qualified custodians, encrypted environments, multiparty authorizations and regular audits — signaling serious operational planning rather than abstract interest. Why that matters States rarely draft operational custody rules unless they expect to actually hold and manage assets. Explicit inclusion of XRP in a reserve-policy bill and detailed custody requirements mark a notable instance of state recognition and institutional readiness that could support broader on-chain adoption and institutional use cases. XRPL tokenization momentum Behind the scenes, tokenization on the XRPL continued to accelerate. Over a 30-day window, tokenized real-world assets (RWA) on XRPL increased by about $354 million, bringing total XRPL RWA (excluding stablecoins) to approximately $1.874 billion, according to X. That figure nudged XRPL past Solana’s roughly $1.7 billion RWA footprint, while BNB Chain remained higher at about $2.3 billion — leaving XRPL roughly $400 million behind the chain leader. The data underscore that infrastructure and real-world utility growth have not paused despite price weakness. Putting it together: narrative vs. capital Taken together — state-level policy momentum, rapid RWA inflows to XRPL and steady ETF inflows into XRP products — the optics are compelling for proponents who have long forecast very high price levels, including the $589 figure. But there’s an important caveat: infrastructure and recognition create the narrative and the potential, yet without sustained capital inflows and broader market adoption, lofty price targets remain speculative. Bottom line February’s developments strengthened XRP’s institutional and infrastructure story: state policy is explicitly recognizing the token, custody frameworks are being contemplated, and tokenized RWAs on XRPL are growing rapidly. Those are necessary building blocks for major price moves, but not sufficient on their own. Realized appreciation will likely require continued, substantial capital flows and adoption. Disclaimer: This article is informational and not investment advice. Cryptocurrency trading is high risk; do your own research before making financial decisions. © 2026 AMBCrypto Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news
