Emily Walker
The cryptocurrency market has experienced some cooling lately; however, XRP appears to be gaining its unique momentum during this time. This altcoin, usually stable, has started to show stronger performance compared to other major assets in the top ten.
According to blockchain analytics company Santiment, XRP reached a new three-year high on Binance, the largest exchange globally, on Saturday, November 16. This is the first instance since November 11, 2021, that XRP has achieved this price level.
Santiment Highlights Drivers of XRP’s Price Increase
In a recent update on the X platform, Santiment reported that significant purchases by large token holders, specifically whales and sharks, have fueled the recent surge in XRP price. These are defined as addresses that control between 1 million and 100 million tokens.
Typically, a crypto whale refers to an entity with substantial market influence due to extensive holdings. Their direct impact on price movements often leads to other investors mimicking their behavior, anticipating possible market shifts.
Recent on-chain data from Santiment has revealed that these large-scale investors collectively acquired 453.3 million XRP tokens (valued over $526 million) within the past week. This surge in buying activity has positively affected XRP’s price trajectory in recent days.
Moreover, the tokens purchased by whales and sharks are primarily sourced from retail traders who have been selling their holdings for modest profits amid the ongoing rally. Sentiment data indicates that wallets with less than 1 million XRP have offloaded a total of 75.7 million tokens (around $87.9 million) over the last week.
Looking at historical trends, the fact that retail investors are selling their tokens could bode well for XRP’s price in the long run.
In this context, Santiment commented:
Historically, any cryptocurrency tends to experience positive market valuation increases when key stakeholders are boosting their holdings and confidence, while retail fears contribute positively to this growth.
Current XRP Price Overview
At the time of writing, XRP’s price is nearing $1.1, showcasing a remarkable 23% increase in the past 24 hours. The altcoin has been one of the strongest performers over the week, gaining over 116% in the last seven days.
Featured image created by Dall-E, chart from TradingView