The cryptocurrency market saw a sharp decline on Monday, with major cryptocurrencies experiencing a notable downturn in the late afternoon hours. The market’s volatility was exacerbated following the discovery that the corporate registration purportedly filed for the iShares XRP Trust was, in fact, a hoax.
What Happened: XRP’s (CRYPTO: XRP) value surged by 10% following the circulation of what appeared to be an official Delaware corporation registry document for the iShares XRP Trust. This document bore a resemblance to authentic filings previously made by BlackRock Inc (NASDAQ:BLK) for bitcoin and ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
The rally was quickly undone, and the gains were erased within the next thirty minutes following confirmation from Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas that the filing was a forgery. Balchunas revealed that the listing for the XRP trust on the Delaware corporate registry was likely a case of impersonation involving BlackRock’s managing director, Daniel Schwieger.