Most cryptocurrency enthusiasts pay close attention to the top 10 currencies ranked by market capitalization. Right now, we are seeing a few coins separating themselves from the rest of the pack. In particular, interesting things are happening to the Stellar Lumens price. Thanks to solid gains over the past few days, one XLM is now worth over US$0.15. That’s a massive boost for the Stellar Lumens price, as the currency inches closer toward its main competitor, Ripple.

Stellar Lumens Price Explodes

Very few people keep tabs on currencies such as XRP and XLM, mainly because they aren’t classified as cryptocurrencies. Instead, these are digital tokens which are designed to aid the struggling banking sector. It is a worthwhile venture, as a lot of people can benefit from an optimized banking system. Faster and cheaper transactions will be beneficial to consumers and corporations, at least until cryptocurrencies start making a larger impact.

As such, the Stellar Lumens price isn’t something a lot of people will pay attention to. Given this digital token’s previous airdrops, there will be people who own XLM and not even realize it. Additionally, a lot of people sold their tokens in the past without giving XLM a second thought. There are individuals who do see merit in this currency, though, as its value has almost quadrupled in the past month. It’s a remarkable growth for a digital asset few people in the cryptocurrency world seemingly care about right now.

More specifically, the Stellar Lumens price has increased from US$0.028 in early November all the way to US$0.154. While this value pales in comparison to Bitcoin or most altcoins, one also has to keep in mind there are close to 18 billion XLM in circulation. As the supply is bought up slowly, the Stellar Lumens price increases accordingly. The past few days in particular have been interesting, as its value almost doubled. It is unclear where this sudden demand is coming from, or whether it constitutes a pump-and-dump cycle.

With over US$345 million in 24-hour trading volume, it is evident the demand for XLM isn’t coming from just one source. It is commendable to see this digital asset rise in value, as a competitor to Ripple can only be considered a good thing for this industry. With a market cap of nearly US$2.8 billion, things are looking pretty good for Stellar Lumens. Whether or not all of this is even remotely sustainable remains to be seen, though.

For the time being, it seems most of the demand for Stellar Lumens originates from the Bittrex exchange. Its volume is only marginally higher than that of Poloniex, though. The Bitcoin markets are driving this surge in the Stellar Lumens price, as there are only two actual fiat currency markets among the top 10, and one USDT pair. It seems money is flowing from Bitcoin into various altcoins and digital assets right now, rather than fresh money moving to XLM. It’s an interesting trend to keep an eye on, to say the least.

The question on everybody’s mind is where the XLM price will go from here. A temporary Stellar Lumens price increase isn’t something to get overly excited about unless you are a speculator. At the same time, we saw the value of XRP soar out of the blue a while ago as well. If this trend keeps up, these two assets may become a lot closer in value to one another than was ever thought possible.