Ripple’s XRP trading volume increased this week on South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges, surpassing Bitcoin (BTC). On South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, UpBit, XRP accounted for 40% of the trading volume, while Bithumb and Korbit accounted for more than 35%. These events indicate a significant shift from the usual dominance of Bitcoin and Tether’s USDT, reflecting substantial short-term demand for XRP in the country.
XRP’s Surge Extended Beyond South Korean Exchanges
The increase in trading volume was not limited to South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges. Significant growth in XRP activity was also observed on global cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance and OKX, although the trading volume on these exchanges did not surpass Bitcoin or Ethereum (ETH).
Although the open interest in XRP-tracked futures more than doubled, indicating a bullish trend among investors, it returned to normal early today, and Bitcoin regained volume leadership on South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges with the market-wide pullback.
Developments Driving XRP’s Price and Trading Volume Increase
South Korean investors are known for contributing to significant buying pressure and price fluctuations, often leading to enthusiastic rallies in the cryptocurrency market. The recent increase in XRP’s trading volume can be attributed to extensive local media coverage and influential remarks, as highlighted by Web3 analyst Bradley Park on CryptoQuant. Park noted that the surge in trading volume was due to increased interest in news related to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) concerning XRP.
The rise in XRP began last week with the announcement of new indices and reference rates for the altcoin by traditional futures powerhouses CME and CF Benchmarks. Another development contributing to the optimism was Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse stating in a Bloomberg TV interview that he expects a “very soon resolution” in the ongoing legal dispute between Ripple and the SEC. All these developments increased market confidence in XRP.
Along with these, Bitget’s chief analyst Ryan Lee warned against potential over-exuberance. He suggested that the recent surge might lead to a technical correction, expecting some price pullback at the beginning of August. Lee emphasized the importance of XRP rising above the key support level of $0.70 and maintaining stability above this support level to sustain its upward trend.
