XRP Leads Cardano After Single Test Transaction Fuels 30% ADA Rally

Cardano (CRYPTO:ADA) rose 29.9% in the week ending September 23, 2026, jumping from $0.20 to $0.25, a gain driven by a single test transaction on the x402 payment standard and a short squeeze. Meanwhile, XRP (CRYPTO:XRP) climbed 22% to $1.58, extending its lead over Cardano in both real-world payment processing and year-to-date performance.

The Cardano Foundation announced on September 21 that the network has joined x402, an open standard that allows software and AI agents to pay for online services via simple web requests. This integration theoretically enables AI agents to pay for data requests using ADA or a Cardano stablecoin without requiring an account or API key. However, the payment system has completed only one transaction on its test network, where the coins hold no real value. Developers can access the feature, but AI agents have not yet begun making live payments with ADA.

In contrast, the XRP Ledger has processed over 1.4 million AI-agent transactions using the x402 standard, surpassing the 1 million milestone by July. The XRP network also benefits from significant institutional interest, with spot XRP ETFs in the U.S. accumulating approximately $1.71 billion since their launch in November 2025 and currently holding about $1.4 billion of the asset.

Both cryptocurrencies remain in the red for 2026, though XRP has underperformed less. Cardano has dropped 23.5% year-to-date, while XRP has fallen 13.9%. An investor who held XRP from January has lost roughly 10 percentage points less than one who held Cardano. The recent price action for both assets was influenced by short squeezes; on September 21, exchanges liquidated around $300 million worth of short XRP positions in a single hour, following a period where XRP held one of the most crowded short positions among major coins.

Cardano faces a significant hurdle in maintaining its recent momentum. The network is starting from a disadvantage compared to Base and Solana, where Coinbase has reported over 100 million x402 payments since creating the standard in 2025 and transferring it to the Linux Foundation. For Cardano to sustain its rally, it must successfully deploy its payment system on mainnet with real transaction volume soon; any delays risk retracing the entire 30% gain.

Additional developments for XRP include a contract launch on the Moscow Exchange on September 22. This contract settles in rubles and does not purchase or hold XRP directly. The exchange set its margin at 43%, designating XRP as the riskiest option among the five coins listed.

As of September 23, XRP appears to be the more established choice due to its existing payment infrastructure and smaller year-to-date decline. However, its recent surge is also linked to short-squeeze dynamics. If Cardano launches x402 payments on mainnet with visible volume before year-end, it could boost confidence. Conversely, if XRP falls below its weekly starting point of $1.30, its investment proposition may weaken.