PHNIX, a token built on the XRP Ledger and the associated NFT, surged by almost 40% after Ripple (Twitter) profile picture to a PHNIX NFT.
The move mirrors token reactions after the purported DOGE father flips his profit picture to a particular meme coin.
The move sent traders into a frenzy, reviving comparisons with Elon Musk’s history of sparking meme coin rallies through subtle social media tweaks.
In the immediate aftermath, PHNIX token rose nearly 40% to trade for $0.00002264 as of this writing.
Phoenix (PHNIX) Price Performance. Source: CoinGecko
The rally mirrors past episodes tied to Elon Musk. In 2021, Dogecoin jumped 20% after Musk briefly changed his X profile picture to reference the DOGE meme coin.
Earlier this year, his decision to rename his profile to “Harry Bōlz” triggered a 3,000% rally in the associated token.
Similarly, the KEKIUS soared 120% in May after Musk adopted it as part of his X branding. Therefore, Schwartz’s move brings that same speculative energy into the XRP ecosystem.
However, unlike Musk, the Ripple CTO is not known for meme coin antics, making the endorsement all the more surprising.
The PHNIX surge highlights the influence of high-profile crypto figures on market psychology.
While Schwartz did not comment on whether his profile change was intended as an endorsement, the effect was immediate. Data on CoinGecko highlights liquidity and trading volumes in PHNIX spiked as retail traders rushed to buy in.
This phenomenon suggests a broader theme in crypto markets, where meme coins become a shilling point for speculative liquidity.
Personality-driven actions, memes, and cultural signals can often overshadow fundamentals in the short term.
Nonetheless, Musk-related rallies have historically fizzled after initial euphoria, often leaving latecomers exposed. This suggests the PHNIX price could suffer a similar pattern unless a subsequent fundamental event or announcement presents.

Song accused BTC Core developers of defecting and failing to address widespread community concerns about non-monetary data on the ledger. Jimmy Song, a Bitcoin (BTC) developer and advocate, slammed the decision by Bitcoin Core developers to remove the OP_Return limit for non-monetary data embedded on the Bitcoin blockchain in the upcoming Bitcoin Core 30 upgrade, calling it “fiat” mentality.Song accused the Core developers of deflecting user concerns about removing the OP_Return limit, which is currently 80 bytes in size, and ignoring the significant pushback from the Bitcoin community and node runners. He also said:You can argue whether that's something desirable or not, but saying you can't define it is a stalling tactic meant to avoid the real argument about actual impact — particularly, the long-term impact of this change,” Song continued.Read more

