The excitement surrounding the XRP market due to the upcoming ETF launch has been tempered by significant sales from major investors. Recent data reveals that large investors, often referred to as ‘whales’, have offloaded 40 million XRPs in the last 24 hours, a move that has significantly impacted the market dynamics. This development coincides with investors eagerly anticipating the launch of the REX-Osprey XRP ETF, adding further intrigue to the market situation.
Santiment Data Reveals XRP Whale Activity
According to data from Santiment, large wallets possessing between 10 to 100 million XRP have sold over 40 million XRP in the last day. This significant sale continues a distribution trend observed over the past weeks. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) postponed its decision on the spot XRP ETF application by Franklin Templeton, creating uncertainty in the market and making it difficult for a definite direction to form.
A review of the order books on exchanges like Binance, Coinbase, and OKX highlights significant sell orders at the $3.05 level. Additionally, whales have opened short positions between $3.3 and $3.6, restricting upward price movements. This behavior could stem from cautious institutional demand for the XRP ETF, similar to what was previously observed with the Solana 
$86 ETF.
Continuing Sale Pressure Indicated by Blockchain Metrics
CryptoQuant’s data shows the 30-day moving average of XRP whale flows still issuing strong sale signals. At the year’s start, a similar distribution resulted in a pullback after reaching a price peak. The steep selling has been driven by long-term investors who are already profitable, pushing the price down to around $2.70.
Over the past 24 hours, XRP’s price registered a significant increase, rising over 1% to $3.05. During this period, its lowest was at $2.98 and highest at $3.07. Trading volume surged by over 40%. However, data from Coinglass indicates a decline in the total value of open positions in XRP futures over the past four hours. Derivatives traders have prominently executed sell-side transactions on platforms such as CME, Binance, and OKX.
