XRP has climbed from below $1 to around $1.50 in less than two weeks, putting the token’s rapid advance at the center of crypto market discussions. The key question now is whether traders should lock in some profits or remain fully invested as leverage appears to be contributing more to the rally than fresh spot demand.
XRP briefly hit $1.69 on August 22 before retreating toward $1.50-$1.53. By August 23, it had slipped to about $1.48, still up 47.77% over seven days. Its market capitalization stood at $92.95 billion, while daily trading volume reached $22.45 billion.
The broader crypto market has also been supportive. Bitcoin rose from roughly $62,000 to $77,000 during the same stretch, while the Crypto Fear & Greed Index climbed to 67, indicating Greed. XRP has significantly outperformed Bitcoin, with inflows into spot ETFs adding to the buying pressure.
XRP’s Rally Meets Overbought Signals and Rising Leverage
Spot XRP ETFs attracted $18.38 million in net inflows on August 21, including roughly $16.89 million from Bitwise. Weekly inflows came close to $40 million, reportedly making it the strongest week for XRP ETFs since May. Total cumulative inflows are now approaching $1.55 billion.
ETF demand provides a genuine bullish signal, but the weekly inflows remain modest compared with XRP’s more than $90 billion market value. That suggests the rally is being supported by both spot demand and increasingly aggressive derivatives activity.
Momentum indicators are also showing signs of overheating. One widely followed reading placed XRP’s daily RSI at about 85.4, while other estimates ranged from 70 to 83. These levels do not necessarily mean a correction is imminent, but they demonstrate how quickly XRP has climbed.
Futures positioning adds another layer of risk. XRP futures open interest jumped 34.49%, increasing by approximately $939 million to $3.66 billion over seven days. Binance data showed 72.1% of accounts positioned long compared with only 27.9% short.
That imbalance suggests the trade has become crowded. XRP liquidations over the past 24 hours totaled $70.74 million, with longs accounting for $54.68 million, or 77.3%. Three-day liquidations reached $145.15 million, while the largest individual liquidation amounted to $50.27 million on August 22.
Funding rates remained positive at 0.01% every four hours, equivalent to an annualized rate of about 24.94%. Long traders are therefore still paying to maintain leveraged positions even after substantial losses among bullish bets.
Short squeezes have also helped push XRP higher. Roughly $2.2 million worth of short positions are currently exposed as XRP breaks through the $1.40-$1.50 range. But gains generated by forced short covering are generally less durable than those backed by sustained spot purchases.
For that reason, taking partial profits could make sense. Selling 20% to 30% of a position around current levels could secure some gains while leaving exposure to a potential move toward $1.65-$1.70 and possibly $2.
XRP Still Has a Broader Bullish Narrative
XRP’s long-term case extends beyond its recent price momentum. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse participated in the first meeting of the CFTC’s Innovation Advisory Committee alongside representatives from major financial firms, calling the group an “Olympic roster of crypto.”
The development carries weight for XRP after Ripple’s lengthy legal battle with the SEC. However, Garlinghouse’s committee role is not a legal determination or formal classification of XRP. The SEC’s proposed “Regulation Crypto Assets” framework also does not resolve the separate Ripple litigation.
The CLARITY Act remains another potential catalyst. If passed, the legislation could classify XRP as a digital commodity under CFTC oversight. However, political momentum alone does not ensure the bill will become law, leaving room for disappointment if market expectations get ahead of regulatory developments.
RLUSD provides another positive signal for the wider Ripple ecosystem. The stablecoin’s market capitalization has grown to about $2.1 billion from roughly $1.5 billion at the start of the year. Still, RLUSD’s growth should not be treated as direct evidence of increased XRP demand because the two tokens have different purposes.
After gaining roughly 50% in less than two weeks, taking some profits does not necessarily mean abandoning the bullish XRP thesis. It can simply reduce downside risk while preserving enough exposure to participate if the rally continues.
