Ripple has passed Ethereum to become the second most valuable Cryptocurrency, according to its current average price from cryptocurrency data aggregator Coin Market Cap. At the time of this writing, Ripple has a market cap of more than $100 billion, passing up the $69 billion of previous number two, Ethereum.
According to FT, today’s surge comes after three major Japanese credit card companies signed on to use Ripple’s blockchain technology.
Ripple’s price has been booming for several weeks, however, going back as far as an announcement on the official Ripple website on December 14th that the Japan Bank Consortium would be partaking in a Ripple pilot with a pair of South Korean banks.
Ripple is a controversial cryptocurrency, since it has primarily been targeted at preexisting banks, credit card companies, and payment providers to serve as an efficient way to move funds. The spirit of other cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, have long been established in anti-establishment ideals.