XRP is trading near the $2.10 level after a strong move earlier this month. While the market has cooled and excess leverage has been cleared. On top of it, XRP has formed a Golden Cross, a signal that previously appeared before the token rallied to its all-time high, raising questions about whether the pattern could repeat.
Leverage Reset Pushes XRP Into a Tight Range
One of the biggest changes came from the derivatives market. XRP recently went through a rare two-sided liquidation event on Binance Futures. First, on January 5, the price pushed sharply higher, triggering around $4.4 million in short liquidations as late sellers were forced to exit.
Just a day later, the move reversed. Nearly $5.5 million in long positions were wiped out, pulling the price back down.
This back-to-back cleanup removed leverage from both directions and left XRP trading in a narrow $2.07 to $2.17 range as traders waited for a fresh catalyst.
Whale Activity Cools After Months of Heavy Participation
With leverage flushed out, attention has shifted to on-chain and institutional signals. According to CryptoQuant data, whales are still the dominant force, accounting for about 60% of XRP inflows to Binance, while retail traders make up the rest.
However, whale activity has been slowly declining since mid-December. This suggests large holders may be stepping back after months of heavy involvement near the top of the rally, allowing the market to cool and stabilize.
Institutional & ETF Flows Remain Key Support
At the same time, institutional interest remains a key support. Spot XRP ETFs have attracted nearly $1.49 billion in inflows since launch, even though they saw a $40.8 million outflow on January 7 during the recent price dip.
This shows that while short-term sentiment can weaken, longer-term interest has not disappeared.
XRP Chart Forming Golden Cross
On the technical side, analysts are watching early signs of strength. Chart data shared by ChartNerd shows XRP printing a Golden Cross on the 5-day MACD, with the histogram turning positive. The last time this signal appeared was in July, just before XRP pushed to new highs.
📣 $XRP has printed a Golden Cross on its 5-Day MACD with a switch into positive on the histogram. The last time this signal printed was in July, where $XRP rallied to a new ATH. pic.twitter.com/LdCYU709Kt
— 🇬🇧 ChartNerd 📊 (@ChartNerdTA) January 9, 2026
If the historical pattern follows again, XRP price will soon hit its all-time high of $3.68.
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