The XRP market is currently defined by a significant contradiction. On one hand, U.S. spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tracking the asset have recorded net inflows for an unprecedented 30 consecutive trading days, signaling robust institutional demand. On the other, the cryptocurrency’s price remains stubbornly stagnant, unable to capitalize on this bullish backdrop. A closer look at on-chain activity reveals the source of this impasse: large holders appear to be strategically offloading their tokens into the rising institutional bid.
Institutional Demand Reaches New Heights
The appetite from institutional investors has never been clearer. Data shows that XRP-focused ETFs in the United States have achieved a notable milestone, attracting net new capital every day for a full month. In the week ending December 19 alone, these products saw inflows exceeding $82 million.
This sustained demand has pushed the total assets under management (AUM) for these funds past the $1.14 billion threshold. Major financial institutions, including Canary Capital, Franklin Templeton, and Bitwise, are increasingly cementing XRP’s position as a core holding within diversified institutional portfolios. This trend has persisted even amid broader market uncertainty, such as that caused by recent Bank of Japan policy decisions, which failed to disrupt the inflow pattern.
Whales Counteract with Strategic Distribution
However, this institutional accumulation is being met with substantial selling from so-called “whales.” Market researcher PelinayPA from CryptoQuant has identified a concerning pattern that explains the price weakness. Significant volumes of XRP are currently flowing onto exchanges, primarily in batches ranging from 100,000 to over one million tokens.
Movements of this scale are atypical for retail investors and strongly indicate that large-scale holders are transferring their coins to trading platforms for sale. While this does not constitute a panic-driven sell-off, the consistent increase in available supply acts as a persistent cap on price appreciation. Each time buying demand attempts to push the price higher, major investors utilize the resulting liquidity to execute sell orders. Consequently, XRP continues to display technical weakness, forming lower highs despite positive fundamental news.
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Underlying Ecosystem Shows Strength
Beyond the price action, the fundamentals of the Ripple ecosystem demonstrate notable resilience. The RLUSD stablecoin, launched one year ago, has now achieved a market capitalization of $1 billion. With custody services provided by BNY Mellon and audits conducted by Deloitte, Ripple’s strategy is clearly targeted at regulated markets and institutional use cases.
Activity on the XRP Ledger itself remains elevated, processing between 1.8 and 2 million transactions daily. Furthermore, the number of active addresses saw a significant increase during the first quarter of 2025, pointing to growing real-world utility and adoption of the network.
Critical Technical Battle at Key Levels
As of the latest data, XRP is trading at $1.81, positioning it directly at a crucial support zone. The asset now trades more than 40% below its 52-week high of $3.04. From a technical analysis perspective, the $2.00 level has emerged as a formidable resistance barrier, where previous bullish attempts have been decisively rejected.
The path forward hinges on which force will prevail. A sustained trend reversal is only likely once the selling pressure from large holders subsides and the price can reclaim the $2.00 hurdle with conviction. Until then, with fresh supply continuously entering the market, a breach below the current $1.81 support could trigger a further decline toward the $1.66 level.
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