Is XRP still the “next Bitcoin (BTC)” these days? That’s what it has grown to be known as, after soaring up the cryptocurrency ranks in recent months. But cryptocurrency investors have been hit with a Ripple price nosedive this week. Compared to seven days ago, this coin is trading about 34% lower:

Compared to 24 hours ago, XRP has basically gone flat. In fact, over the last few days, the freefall has stopped – and we’re seeing a stable Ripple price. That’s a bit unexpected, especially considering the fact that MIT Technology Review published an article yesterday entitled “No, Ripple Isn’t the Next Bitcoin.

Sure, there are a lot of signs that a different up-and-coming cryptocurrency could be the actual next Bitcoin. But there is also a lot of evidence that XRP may be able to pull it off.

Good News May Soon Disrupt the Currently Flat Ripple Price

A not-so-optimistic review from MIT certainly wasn’t a great boon to the XRP brand. But there has been good news too – news that might have (and maybe still might) boost XRP higher.

The company behind Ripple is reportedly teaming up with MoneyGram

Ripple's XRP is exploding after announcing a partnership with Moneygram to speed up transfers

That’s a massive deal. It’s a big step in the right direction of legitimacy for XRP. It’s certainly giving us hope that there will be a Ripple price turnaround here pretty soon.

MoneyGram is a global payments solutions provider focused on remittances. Together with Ripple, they will pilot a program to experiment with XRP inside MoneyGram’s payment flows. The partnership may also include other products from the blockchain organization.

The two new partners didn’t disclose many details about the project. They did tell Bloomberg, however, that they were both optimistic that their payment services will be improved as a result.

This is yet another legacy, institution-type of financial organization legitimizing XRP as a serious contender in the currency space. It’s a pretty big deal, and we are hoping that it is soon reflected in this coin’s price.