Gold

President Donald Trump

Donald Trump

Gold sank and oil surged on Friday as tensions over Iran flared again. Through it all, XRP, the token crypto traders call the 'banker coin,' held its ground.
U.S. President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.aa.com.tr/en/us-israel-iran-war/trump-says-us-not-negotiating-with-iran-something-will-happen-fairly-soon-/4096596" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">said</a> on Wednesday that Washington was "not negotiating" with Iran and that something would happen "fairly soon." <a href="https://www.npr.org/2026/10/22/nx-s1-6011514/us-israel-iran-war" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Reports</a> have since said U.S. and Israeli militaries have prepared plans for possible renewed strikes on Iran after the midterm elections in November.
Oil prices climbed sharply on Friday as traders priced in renewed supply risks. <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/@LCO.1/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Brent crude rose</a> above $116 a barrel, while WTI <a href="https://www.tradingview.com/symbols/USOIL/?timeframe=5D" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">traded near</a> $103, with <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqwy71ww156ro" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Houthi attacks</a> on Saudi targets and Iranian military-readiness <a href="https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20261023-iranian-army-orders-ground-forces-to-maintain-highest-combat-readiness-amid-tensions-with-us/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">comments</a> adding to the pressure.
Normally, geopolitical stress pushes investors toward traditional havens such as gold. Friday's market looked different.
<a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/policy/hegseth-issues-stern-warning-to-pentagon-staff" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Related: Hegseth issues stern warning to Pentagon staff</a>
<h2 id="gold-and-silver-fail-to-follow-oil-higher">Gold and silver fail to follow oil higher</h2>
Gold <a href="https://goldprice.org/gold-price-usa.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">fell</a> below $4,000 an ounce, while silver traded near $54, even as crude oil surged.
Gold is traditionally viewed as a safe haven because it is scarce, highly liquid and carries no credit risk. Investors often turn to it when confidence in currencies, governments or financial markets weakens.
But higher oil prices can feed inflation. That in turn can make central banks less willing to cut interest rates, which hurts gold because the metal does not pay interest.
"Heightened inflation concerns suggest that major central banks of the world won't be able to ease monetary policies as quickly as they want to," Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/india/gold-heads-steep-weekly-loss-oil-prices-fuel-fed-rate-concerns-2026-10-23/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">quoted</a> American Gold Exchange analyst Jim Wyckoff as saying. "All that's working against the gold and silver market bulls at present."
Gold was heading for its <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/us/gold-price-today-gold-rate-suffers-biggest-weekly-loss-since-june-silver-price-lowest-since-november-2025-check-what-to-expect-in-november-december/articleshow/135146284.cms?from=mdr" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">steepest weekly decline</a> since June, while silver was also on track for a weekly loss on Friday.
Wyckoff also said margin calls from the technology-stock selloff were prompting some investors to sell gold and silver to raise cash.
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 Billionaire Tim Draper Says Gold Belongs to the Past as Bitcoin Could Become Global Money (6:06)
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<h2 id="xrp-holds-its-ground">XRP holds its ground</h2>
Crypto markets were comparatively steady during the same window. <a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/bitcoin" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Bitcoin</a><a href="https://in.tradingview.com/symbols/BTCUSD/?exchange=CRYPTO" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">traded</a> around $81,600, up roughly 0.4% on Friday, while XRP <a href="https://in.tradingview.com/symbols/XRPUSD/?exchange=CRYPTO" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">traded near</a> $1.31, also slightly higher. Ether, BNB and Solana posted <a href="https://in.tradingview.com/markets/cryptocurrencies/prices-all/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">modest gains</a> as well.
That resilience is notable because rising oil prices and renewed geopolitical risk would normally be a difficult backdrop for crypto. Higher inflation expectations can support higher interest rates and push investors to cut exposure to risk assets.
The crypto market, however, has not entirely escaped broader weakness. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $635.6 million in net outflows on Thursday, led by $254.1 million from BlackRock's IBIT and $217.5 million from Fidelity's FBTC, <a href="https://farside.co.uk/btc/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">according</a> to Farside Investors.
Those withdrawals came just one day after the same funds attracted $524.8 million, showing a sharp reversal rather than a sustained investor exit.
<h3 id="popular-on-thestreet-roundtable">Popular on TheStreet Roundtable:</h3>
<ul>
 <li><a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/jpmorgans-answer-to-the-stablecoin-threat-is-here" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">JPMorgan’s answer to the stablecoin threat is here</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/business/major-gold-holder-backs-nvidia-challenger" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Major gold holder backs NVIDIA challenger</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/blackrocks-iconic-fund-posts-strongest-day-in-over-12-months" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">BlackRock's iconic fund posts strongest day in over 12 months</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="why-xrp-is-called-the-banker-coin">Why XRP is called the 'banker coin'</h2>
XRP's nickname comes from Ripple, the payments company that has spent years pitching banks and payment firms on moving money across borders with its technology. Ripple promotes XRP as a <a href="https://ripple.com/insights/fundamentals-of-xrp/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">bridge currency</a> for those transfers.
In that setup, money is converted into XRP, sent across the XRP Ledger within seconds, and converted into the destination currency on the other side. The idea is to spare banks from holding pre-funded accounts in foreign currencies.
The "banker coin" label is informal, not an official designation, and it comes with a caveat worth spelling out. A bank using Ripple's software does <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/thomassilkjaer/2019/03/07/14-common-misunderstandings-about-ripple-and-xrp/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">not necessarily use</a> XRP itself, since much of what Ripple sells to financial institutions works without the token.
That distinction matters on a day like Friday. XRP's steadiness does not mean banks were buying the token during the oil spike. While gold, the classic haven, fell, one of crypto's most established payment tokens was slightly higher.
For now, oil, precious metals and crypto are moving in different directions. XRP cannot be hailed as a new safe haven just yet, but Friday showed that renewed geopolitical stress is not pushing every major asset the same way.'
<h2 id="the-roundtable-100">The Roundtable 100</h2>
If you follow our market coverage, don’t miss the <a href="https://roundtable100.com/tab/rankings" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Roundtable 100</a>. Updated every Friday, it's a power ranking of the 100 most investable tech stocks, including digital assets. Check out the latest <a href="https://roundtable100.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">RTB 100</a> rankings at <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">roundtable100.com</a>.
<a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/circle-jumps-40-places-on-the-roundtable-100-after-73-3b-milestone" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Related: Circle jumps 40 places on the Roundtable 100 after $73.3B milestone</a>

'Banker coin' defies oil shock as gold sinks

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