Standard Chartered PLC

XRP exchange-traded funds recorded just $27.29 million in inflows in July, a 96% drop from the $666.61 million they gathered in their first month of trading, leaving the funds $6.5 billion short of Standard Chartered's $8 billion first-year forecast. The funds launched on November 13, 2025, and have accumulated $1.51 billion in total inflows over nine months, but their current value is $933 million, down 43% from a January peak of $1.65 billion as the XRP price fell 46% since January 2026. Standard Chartered cut its year-end XRP price prediction by 65% to $2.80 in February, even though cumulative ETF inflows already cleared the $1.15 billion trigger condition the bank had set for its original $8 price target. To reach $8 billion by the one-year mark on November 13, XRP ETFs would need roughly $2.2 billion in monthly inflows for three straight months, more than triple their best month ever, and at July's pace it would take about 20 years. The bank's revised $7 XRP price prediction for 2027 depends on the CLARITY Act passing and inflows scaling past $4 billion, with a Senate cloture vote set for September 15, but Polymarket prices the bill's chances of passing this year near 16%.

Chinese authorities in some cities have started levying taxes on insurance policies purchased overseas by mainland Chinese residents, triggering a sharp sell-off in insurance and banking stocks in the Hong Kong market. The Hang Seng Index fell 1.7% in morning trading. AIA Group shares tumbled as much as 9.2%, their biggest drop since April 2025, while Prudential declined up to 6.5%. HSBC and Standard Chartered both fell more than 2%. Reports indicate that since 2025, some policyholders in Beijing who declared dividend income from participating policies bought in Hong Kong have been taxed 20% on the actual gains. Goldman Sachs analysts said that if such measures are expanded, new policy sales to mainland Chinese customers could decline significantly.

XRP exchange-traded funds have attracted just $1.51 billion in cumulative inflows since launching in November 2025, falling well short of the $4 billion to $8 billion first-year estimates from JPMorgan and Standard Chartered. The funds now hold only $988.78 million in assets because XRP has lost more than half its value, erasing about a third of invested capital on paper. Both banks had based their forecasts on adoption rates seen in Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, but institutional buyers largely stayed away, with Bloomberg Intelligence finding that only 16% of XRP ETF assets were tied to institutional filers at the end of last year. The key catalyst that could unlock massive institutional flows is passage of the CLARITY Act, which would classify XRP as a commodity under federal law, but the bill has stalled in the Senate. Standard Chartered has already cut its 2026 XRP price forecast from $8 to $2.80, while JPMorgan has not published a revised estimate.

Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee expects Bitcoin to end the year near $250,000 and Ethereum near $12,000, far above current levels around $63,000 and $1,800. Lee, who also chairs BitMine Immersion Technologies, the largest corporate Ethereum treasury holder, reiterated his Bitcoin target on CNBC in January, citing a breakdown in the four-year halving cycle and rising spot ETF demand. His Ethereum target assumes a return to its eight-year average ratio against Bitcoin at his $250,000 Bitcoin price, while higher tiers of $22,000 and $62,000 depend on more extreme ratio assumptions. However, Standard Chartered has cut its 2026 Bitcoin target to $100,000, and Fundstrat’s own strategist warned of a pullback to $60,000, while Ethereum’s $12,000 target implies a market cap historically reserved for global reserve currencies.

The pound traded near its 2026 low after Keir Starmer announced his resignation as Britain's prime minister, with investors weighing whether a new Labour administration under likely successor Andy Burnham could revive fiscal concerns. Sterling slid as much as 0.4% to $1.3181 early Monday, approaching the March low of $1.3159, before paring losses. Burnham's path to the premiership was cleared by his victory in the Makerfield by-election, but his lack of policy clarity has left markets nervous about potential increases in bond sales to fund spending, given the UK's existing debt struggles. Commonwealth Bank of Australia strategists warned that any relaxation of fiscal rules would likely be poorly received by the bond market and weigh on the pound. Options traders were already positioned for further weakness, with one-week risk reversals near the most bearish levels in a month, while the currency has also been pressured by expectations that the Bank of England may raise rates less than the US Federal Reserve this year.

Pepeto's presale has surpassed $10.29 million raised, marking the fastest fill among presales this cycle. Large wallets that held Bitcoin and Ethereum through bear markets are entering, drawn by the spread between the presale entry price and the expected listing price. The project offers zero-fee trading across three chains, an AI scanner, SolidProof-audited contracts, and 170% APY staking, with a Binance listing approaching. Meanwhile, Solana's token trades at $71.68, down roughly 75% from its all-time high, and Standard Chartered has trimmed its Solana price prediction to $250 by 2026, while the heaviest gains of 2026 are forming on Ethereum.