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- Traders are observing if the $2.42 support level continues to draw institutional interest, while also looking for a potential breakout above $2.45.
- XRP ETF-related news, Ripple’s $1 billion fundraising, and the acquisition of treasury management company GTreasury could spark sentiment shifts.
Ripple (XRP), the fifth-largest cryptocurrency with a market capitalization of $144 billion, rose 0.7% to close near $2.55 on October 21. Trading activity picked up notably, with volume jumping 12% above the weekly average as total spot volume reached 155.8 million tokens.
The move comes as the broader crypto market consolidates in the wake of Bitcoin’s climb to $114,000, while gold retreated 5.5% to $4,118 per ounce.
Between 14:00 and 16:00 GMT, trading volume surged as large buy orders from institutional players lifted XRP past the $2.42 mark. The rally helped establish firmer support around $2.40, with the price settling into a narrow $2.41–$2.43 band by the close. Analysts interpret this narrow consolidation base as a potential accumulation phase ahead of a directional move.
As of the latest update, XRP is trading around $2.40, down about 3.9% over the past week, but the underlying activity tells a more nuanced story. Trading volume has inched up 6% to $4.97 billion, while derivatives volume has surged 38.2% to $8.56 billion, suggesting renewed speculative interest despite the modest price pullback.
Open interest has slipped slightly by 0.63% to $3.81 billion, hinting at a bit of position unwinding, while options activity shows a mixed picture; total options volume rose nearly 25% to $2.1 thousand, but open interest eased by 3.7% to $410.1 thousand.
On-chain metrics paint a similar balance of strength and caution: stablecoin market capitalization stands at $184.42 million, down 8.85% over the week, and RLUSD dominance sits at 50.14%. Activity on decentralized exchanges remains healthy, with $6.11 million traded in the past 24 hours and $50.57 million over the past week, up 6.9% week-over-week.
Adding to the intrigue, analyst Ali Martinez noted that whales accumulated 30 million XRP in just the past 24 hours, a move often interpreted as quiet confidence during consolidation.
XRP ETF optimism
While the ongoing U.S. government shutdown since October 1 hasn’t completely stalled progress on crypto regulation, it’s certainly slowed momentum.
Lawmakers on the Senate Banking Committee had been in the middle of drafting a comprehensive bill for the digital asset sector, and once the shutdown is resolved, regulatory reviews of XRP-related ETF applications are also expected to resume at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Previously, CNF confirmed that asset managers, including Grayscale Investments, Bitwise Asset Management, CoinShares, and WisdomTree, had filings awaiting final decisions that were anticipated initially for mid- to late October.
Evernorth Holdings, backed by Ripple Labs, plans to merge with Armada Acquisition Corp II, a Nasdaq-listed SPAC, in a deal expected to close in early 2026 and raise over $1 billion. The venture will use the proceeds to build one of the world’s largest XRP reserves through open-market purchases.
This follows Ripple’s separate $1 billion fundraising initiative through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) to strengthen its digital asset reserves. Ripple has also agreed to acquire G-Treasury, a corporate treasury management platform, in another $1 billion deal.
The acquisition is intended to give clients streamlined access to the vast global repo market, leveraging prime brokerage services from Hidden Road.
