- XRP whales increased holdings by 2.8% as smaller investors reduced exposure over the past five weeks.
- Santiment said whale accumulation has historically supported XRP price gains despite retail selling pressure.
- XRP ETF inflows and rising futures open interest point to steady institutional participation in the market.
Large XRP holders have increased their holdings over the past five weeks even as smaller investors reduced their exposure, according to blockchain analytics firm Santiment. Wallets holding between 100,000 and 100 million XRP expanded their balances by 2.8%, while smaller wallets cut their holdings by 5.2% during the same period.
The shift came as XRP gained more than 8% from late June to trade around $1.16, showing a growing divide between large holders increasing their positions and smaller investors reducing theirs.
Whales Strengthen the Bullish Case
Santiment said the divergence has historically been a positive signal for XRP because large holders have typically had a greater influence on the token’s price than smaller retail investors. “Historically, XRP price has tended to move more with key stakeholders and against the smallest retail wallets, so this split supports the bullish case behind the bounce,” the firm said in a post on X.
Analysts have also pointed to the prospect of XRP exchange-traded funds as a potential driver of institutional demand. The XRP Ledger has also expanded its use in cross-border payments, tokenization and the RLUSD stablecoin, helping keep the network on the radar of institutional investors.
ETF Flows Show Uneven Institutional Demand
U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds extended their streak of net inflows to six consecutive trading sessions, while spot XRP ETFs have avoided a single day of net outflows since July 9. The continued inflows point to steady institutional interest in digital-asset investment products despite recent market volatility.
Bitcoin ETFs drew $69 million in net inflows on Wednesday, down from $203 million the previous trading day, bringing cumulative inflows to nearly $52 billion. Assets under management averaged about $80 billion.
Spot Ethereum ETFs also attracted fresh money, recording $73 million in net inflows on Wednesday, almost double Tuesday’s $37 million.
XRP ETF demand remained more modest. The products attracted about $2.5 million in net inflows on Monday and roughly $6 million on Tuesday, lifting cumulative inflows to about $1.49 billion. Average assets under management were around $1 billion.
XRP Futures Signal a Position-Building Phase
CryptoQuant analyst Arab Chain said XRP’s 30-day Open Interest Z-Score on Binance rose to about 1.60, with open interest reaching 440.6 million XRP, above its 30-day average of 418.5 million XRP.
Arab Chain said rising open interest alongside higher prices typically signals fresh capital entering the market, a combination that can support an ongoing rally. At the same time, higher open interest without sustained price gains could leave traders more exposed to liquidations if sentiment weakens.
Related: XRP Price Prediction: Bulls Target $1.16 as Weak Spot Demand Limits Recovery
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