The XRP token finds itself at a pivotal moment. Having recovered from Thursday’s lows near $1.80, the digital asset now trades around $1.87, marking a gain exceeding 4%. This intraday bounce, however, tells only part of the story. Beneath recent price pressure, two countervailing trends are emerging: sustained growth in wallet adoption and the approaching resolution of long-standing regulatory questions.
Diverging Signals: Price Action Versus Network Health
XRP’s trading session began weakly in Europe before pivoting upward during U.S. market hours. A notable surge occurred around 3:25 UTC, where nearly 19 million tokens moved across exchanges within a single minute—a volume indicative of institutional-sized orders. This activity propelled the price past the $1.84 resistance level, which has now transitioned into a short-term support zone.
Despite this push, overall trading volume remained subdued, suggesting larger market participants are exercising caution. Further upside faces immediate supply pressure in the $1.90 to $1.93 range, where sellers have consistently emerged.
Contrasting sharply with a price decline of approximately 50% since its July peak of $3.66, the XRP Ledger tells a story of robust expansion. The count of wallets holding a balance has reached 7.41 million, representing a 29% increase over the past year. Significantly, 710,000 new addresses have been added since the July high alone.
Comparative Wallet Growth:
– XRP: 7.41 million (+10.6% since July peak)
– Ethereum: 167.96 million (Rank 1)
– Bitcoin: 57.62 million (Rank 2)
– Dogecoin: 8.13 million (Rank 4)
Historically, such a divergence between network growth and price performance has often preceded recovery phases, indicating accumulation during consolidation periods.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying XRP?
Institutional Positioning and Regulatory Catalysts
Institutional interest continues to materialize. VivoPower announced this week a collaboration with Lean Ventures to source up to $300 million in Ripple stock for South Korean investors. While this capital does not flow directly into XRP, the transaction provides involved parties indirect exposure to nearly one billion dollars in Ripple-related assets. This move underscores ongoing institutional positioning within the Ripple ecosystem, even amid the token’s technical price weakness.
Potentially the most significant catalyst on the horizon involves regulatory clarity. David Sacks, the White House Crypto Czar, confirmed this week that the markup phase for the Clarity Bill is scheduled for January 2026. This legislation aims to establish clear rules for banks handling crypto assets.
For XRP, the implications could be substantial: classification as a commodity rather than a security, oversight by the CFTC instead of the SEC, and a consequent reduction in regulatory uncertainty. The downstream effects range from streamlined ETF approvals to broader adoption by financial institutions for cross-border payments.
Technical Perspective and Path Forward
XRP is currently consolidating just below the $1.87 level. A sustained breakout above $1.93 would constitute the first bullish signal in weeks and potentially open a path toward $2.00. Conversely, failure to maintain momentum risks a retreat to the trading band between $1.73 and $1.84.
The signals are mixed. Underlying network strength is building, institutions are engaging, and regulatory clarity is on the calendar. Yet, without a confirmed increase in trading volume, the current recovery remains fragile. The coming weeks may well set the direction for the next major move.
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