Bitwise Leads the XRP ETF Market, but Fees Still Matter

The Bitwise XRP ETF was the largest U.S. spot XRP fund in the October 15 comparison reported by 24/7 Wall St., with about $561 million of assets. That represented roughly 37% of the $1.53 billion held across the five funds in the dataset. Size gives Bitwise an early lead, but it does not by itself identify the best vehicle for every investor.

Five funds, different economics

The comparison included the Bitwise XRP ETF, Grayscale's GXRP, Franklin Templeton's XRPZ, Canary's XRPC and 21Shares' TOXR. Reported management fees ranged from 0.19% for Franklin Templeton to 0.50% for Canary, with Bitwise at 0.34%.

On a $10,000 position, the difference between a 0.19% and 0.50% annual fee is $31 a year before compounding. That is small beside XRP's day-to-day volatility, but it becomes more meaningful for long holding periods. Bid-ask spreads, trading volume and the fund's premium or discount to net asset value can matter more than the stated fee when liquidity is thin.

Why the largest fund can stay large

Asset scale can create a feedback loop. More assets and trading activity may encourage market makers to quote tighter spreads, which can attract additional investors. A larger fund can also appear safer operationally because it is less likely to be closed for lack of demand.

That advantage is not guaranteed. The official Bitwise launch materials state that the fund holds spot XRP and warn that significant holdings by Ripple Labs and other early stakeholders can affect XRP's market price. Every spot XRP ETF remains exposed to the same underlying token, so fund-level differences do not remove XRP's concentration, custody or regulatory risks.

A ranking with limits

The reported asset figures are a dated snapshot, not a permanent league table. They can change with XRP's price, creations and redemptions. The underlying comparison attributes the market totals to SoSoValue, while issuer materials confirm fund structure and fees but do not provide a single synchronized industry total.

Investors comparing the funds should therefore use current issuer pages and trading data at the time of purchase. Bitwise's lead is meaningful evidence of adoption. The decision still comes down to total ownership cost, liquidity and confidence in the fund's operating setup, not simply which ticker was largest on October 15.