Steven McClurg (스티븐 맥클러그), chief executive officer of Canary Capital, said institutional lending and yield products are increasing on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). He said it would not be surprising if XRP tops $3.40 in the next few months.

On Aug. 24, blockchain outlet The Crypto Basic reported that McClurg made the projection based on growth in institutional lending and yield products on the XRPL.

XRP traded around $1.50. It rose 49 percent over the past week. It climbed from a weekly low of $0.9882 to $1.70, taking the gain from the weekly low to more than 70 percent.

McClurg said XRP is likely to become a leading protocol in institutional financial infrastructure. Individual investors may prefer decentralised networks, but financial institutions prefer infrastructure with greater centralisation and regulatory compliance capabilities, he said.

He also pointed to the emergence of a structure for generating yields on the XRPL as a factor drawing in funds. If assets can generate returns within the ecosystem, the appeal of the XRPL increases for both institutions and holders, he said. He said more lending would expand uses for XRP and could increase the flow of funds moving through the XRPL.

Cicada Credit and Clearpool were cited as examples of expanding institutional credit and lending services. Cicada Credit brings lending expertise and borrowers into the ecosystem, while Clearpool provides institutional lending infrastructure. McClurg said the lending market opportunity is large and could also exceed $1 billion to $2 billion.

He took a cautious stance on the broader cryptocurrency market. McClurg said the market remains in a bear market and cited September's seasonal weakness and U.S. midterm elections as key volatility factors. He projected that a full-fledged bull market could emerge after the midterm elections or around January 2027.

He said a new price range has formed for XRP and left open the possibility of an additional rise of about 40 percent through 2026 or early 2027. A target above $3 may appear somewhat high, but he did not rule out a scenario in which it breaks $3.40 within the next year.

He also mentioned the South Korean market. He cited a 273 percent surge in Upbit's XRP trading volume since March and said the use of the won as a major cryptocurrency trading pair supports South Korea's high trading activity. He said Ethereum is dominant in Canada and the United States, but XRP has built a stronger position in South Korea.

For XRP to sustain its own upward move, institutional lending and yield products based on the XRPL must translate into actual fund inflows. If strong trading demand in the South Korean market continues as well, it is expected to bolster McClurg's view that XRP could break $3.40.