Monero Was Crypto's Lone Winner This Weekend — And Kraken Just Said 'XMR Stays Listed'

Monero rose while almost everything else in crypto fell

Monero (XMR) closed Saturday, October 24 at $614.81, up 5.2% on the day and 10.4% on the week, making it the standout among the 30 largest cryptocurrencies while the total crypto market fell 1.3% to $2.66 trillion. Bitcoin closed at $80,782, down 0.2%, and Ether fell 1.1% to $2,356. Of the 50 largest assets tracked at the close, only 7 rose and 35 fell, with a median move of -1.0%.

The strength continued into Sunday. CoinMarketCap data cited on October 25 put Monero as the strongest gainer among the top 100 cryptocurrencies, and separate market snapshots early Sunday in the U.S. again listed XMR as the leading gainer, up about 5.3%. Monero is now the 13th-largest cryptocurrency, with a market value of about $11.59 billion, up 7.9% over seven days and 8.8% over 30 days, though still about 22.9% below its all-time high of $797.73.

What happened at Kraken?

Kraken, a major crypto exchange, withdrew questionnaires it had sent to some Monero customers and confirmed that XMR stays listed. Co-CEO Arjun Sethi said in posts on X on October 23-24 that customers who had bought XMR with their own money and withdrawn it received emails asking for their employer, the source of their funds, and what they planned to do with the coins.

Sethi said no rule required those questions. He explained that the requests followed a decision to treat a young customer holding a large amount of money as a possible red flag — an assessment he rejected. The requests have been withdrawn, affected clients have been told nothing is required of them, and Kraken says standard checks on where deposited funds came from remain in place.

His line was explicit: asking where money came from is a fair compliance question; asking what a customer will do with coins after they leave the exchange is not. In his words, "XMR stays listed. Buy it here, take it home."

Why is this blowing up?

Privacy coins live or die on exchange access. Monero is designed to obscure transaction amounts and participants on its blockchain, which is exactly why regulators pressure exchanges over it, and why several venues have restricted or removed it in some regions. Kraken itself restricts Monero deposits and trading for clients in the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom, and restricts it in Canada and Australia as well. Against that backdrop, a major exchange publicly reversing a privacy-invasive questionnaire — and recommitting to the listing — is a rare, concrete piece of good news for XMR holders.

Traders also noticed the timing. The reversal landed on October 24, the same weekend XMR was outperforming a falling market. Market coverage on October 25 described the move as driven mainly by spot buying and sector momentum rather than leveraged bets, and noted that no single Monero-specific announcement fully explains it. In other words, the Kraken news added fuel and attention, but it should not be credited as the sole cause of the rally.

Key facts

Price: XMR closed October 24 at $614.81 (+5.2% day, +10.4% week), trading in a $565.91-$615.18 range.
Market: Total crypto market cap was $2.66 trillion (-1.3% in 24 hours); Bitcoin was $80,782 (-0.2%) and Ether $2,356 (-1.1%).
Breadth: Only 7 of the top 50 assets rose on October 24; 35 fell.
Kraken: Withdrawal questionnaires withdrawn October 24; source-of-funds checks remain; XMR remains listed where it is legally available.
Regulatory backdrop: The EU anti-money-laundering framework is scheduled to apply to providers dealing with anonymity-focused crypto assets from July 10, 2027.

What's next

Two things will decide whether this weekend's move lasts. First, price: analysts watching XMR have flagged the $620-$650 area as resistance and support near $575, so a sustained hold above Saturday's close matters more than one strong day. Second, access: every exchange decision on privacy coins now gets read as a signal, and Kraken's reversal will be tested against the tightening rules already scheduled in Europe. For now, the verified story is simple — in a red weekend for crypto, Monero was green, and its biggest exchange headline was a retreat from extra questions, not a new restriction. This post reports market news only and is not financial advice.

Sources

FAQ

Why did Monero rise on October 24-25, 2026?

XMR rose 5.2% to $614.81 on October 24 while most large cryptocurrencies fell. Coverage attributed the move mainly to spot buying and privacy-sector momentum; Kraken's same-weekend decision to scrap its XMR withdrawal questionnaires added attention, but no single announcement fully explains it.

What did Kraken change about Monero?

Kraken withdrew emails asking some XMR customers for their employer, source of funds, and intended use of withdrawn coins. Co-CEO Arjun Sethi said no rule required the questions, confirmed affected customers no longer need to respond, and said XMR stays listed.

Is Monero available everywhere on Kraken?

No. Kraken restricts Monero deposits and trading in the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom, with restrictions also applying in Canada and Australia. Availability depends on the customer's location.

How did the rest of crypto do that day?

Weakly. The total crypto market fell 1.3% to $2.66 trillion on October 24, Bitcoin slipped 0.2% to $80,782, Ether fell 1.1% to $2,356, and only 7 of the top 50 assets rose.