The XRP ETFs market has already received full approval from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), with six products now managing more than $1 billion in combined assets. Yet one major player remains absent: BlackRock.
According to the CEO of Canary Capital, Steven McClurg, that may not last forever. He believes the world’s largest asset manager could file for an XRP ETF in late 2026 or early 2027, assuming current trends continue.
XRP ETF Assets Must Hit $3B Before BlackRock Goes Away
As noted by market expert Sam Daodu on Tuesday reportassets in XRP-linked ETFs rose to a peak of $1.6 billion in January before recovering to about $500 million, bringing total assets back to nearly $1 billion.
In McClurg’s view, BlackRock is unlikely to move unless certain market signals are undeniable. One of the clearest indicators would be the continued growth of existing XRP ETF assets.
While assets increased by $1.6 billion in January 2026 and have since remained close to $1 billion, an increase to $3 billion or more would indicate strong and robust demand.
Canary’s CEO asserts that BlackRock is paying close attention market capitalization and the desire of the investor. If the current XRP ETFs were to triple in size, the commercial case for launching a competing product would be much stronger.
Competitive forces can also speed up the timeline. BlackRock is not usually the first to enter a new category, but it rarely allows competitors to dominate unchallenged.
McClurg noted that it could be a long time before BlackRock feels pressured to respond if other large companies file in the XRP ETF space. A competitor’s move could force BlackRock’s hand sooner than the current speculative window.
Perhaps the most important thing would be the need that arises institutional clients. If public pension funds, university endowments or private equity funds start allocating XRP among their approved asset classes, that change could be a clear signal.
The Ripple Connection
Notably, BlackRock’s relationship with Ripple’s wider ecosystem may be closer than many think. The company’s tokenized treasury fund, BUIDL, uses Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin as collateral.
That integration suggests a certain level of familiarity and comfort with the infrastructure connected to Ripple, even in the absence of an XRP ETF. Such obligations can reduce the distance between monitoring the market and entering it legally, should it seek to accelerate.
For now, BlackRock remains on the sidelines of the XRP ETF space. Whether it enters in late 2026, 2027, or down the road will likely depend on one central factor: whether institutional need grows strong enough to make living without much danger.
As of this writing, XRP was trading at $1.34, marking an 8% drop from the previous week.
Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
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