XRP (XRP) has entered a price discovery period for the first time since 2017. The altcoin has had green candles for three consecutive months for only the second time in its history, and its current streak is even more significant than the March-to-March period. May 2017.
XRP 1 month chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
Although the altcoin has reached new all-time highs on certain exchanges, a clear all-time high can be seen once it breaks $3.40.
XRP’s open interest increased by $6 billion in 16 days.
XRP’s open interest (OI) has reached an all-time high of $7.9 billion, with OI increasing 27.34% in the last 24 hours. Futures trading volume doubled at the same time, now reaching $42.87 billion, according to CoinGlass data.
XRP futures open interest. Source: Coinglass
Since January 1, XRP’s open interest has increased 300% from $1.92 billion in early 2025. The general assumption here is that the futures market played a significant role in XRP’s parabolic rise. But in reality, that wasn’t the case.
On-chain analyst Dom went on to state that XRP’s rise is “spot driven.” When comparing spot cumulative volume delta (CVD) and perpetual CVD, Dom said both metrics have an indirect correlation. Dom said.
“The Perps degraded the performance of every single pump, and after their withdrawal, I jumped into my shorts with every pump.”
The above statement was further verified through analysis of futures data. As observed, while the funding rate remained constant in January, it increased sharply during XRP’s initial rally in November.
XRP aggregate funding rate and spot volume, premium on open interest. Source: Belo
On the other hand, aggregated spot volume recorded an upward trend, confirming Dom’s claim that XRP’s rally is spot-driven. Moreover, the negative total premium to open interest means that the futures market continues to bid for XRP prices to rise. This means that the current situation is a battle between bulls and bears.
relevant: ChatGPT said that if a spot ETF is approved, an XRP price of $10-$50 is ‘feasible’.
XRP exchange reserves increase
Amid the market euphoria, it is important to note that XRP exchange reserves have been slowly increasing over the past few weeks. Binance’s XRP holdings have increased 10% since December 16, according to data from CryptoQuant. As the price of XRP soared in early November, holdings declined sharply.
Binance’s XRP exchange reserves. Source: CryptoQuant
This means that although profit-taking is evident among investors, exchange holdings are still below the 2024 annual average.
Meanwhile, data analytics platform Santiment highlighted that XRP whale activity has risen to its highest level in six weeks. In the X post, the analytics website noted:
“In the last eight hours, there were 2,365 XRP transactions worth more than $100,000, the highest since December 34. “The total number of holders is also rapidly increasing.”
relevant: Bitcoin price falls 3% and XRP hits record high, ignoring US jobs.
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