Exploring Ripple’s Motive Behind 310 Million XRP Escrow Transfer

In December, Ripple Labs transferred 310 million XRP ($198 million) from its Ripple (1) escrow wallet. The transfer by Ripple has left roughly 26.34 million XRP in the wallet, which, at today’s XRP price, is worth approximately $16.7 million.

There are now under 40 billion XRP tokens in escrow, which will be gradually released until 2027. Ripple Labs minted 100 billion XRP tokens before the launch of the XRP Ledger and sells them regularly according to quarterly restrictions.

XRP Direction Hard to Predict

Ripple’s executives, who also hold a significant share, can only sell a limited amount of tokens. The selling has a more substantial impact than tokens burned for transaction fees, usually negligible.

Read more: How To Buy XRP and Everything You Need To Know

Recent technical analysis of the XRP price does not give a clear picture of price movements. Since July, the price has followed a symmetric triangle, a neutral pattern, meaning a breakout or a breakdown is possible.

On Tuesday, the Relative Strength Indicator (RSI) was 50, which indicates an undetermined trend.

The price got a boost in mid-November when news surfaced of an alleged application by BlackRock to launch an XRP institutional product. XRP rose 12.4% before BlackRock confirmed that the “iShares XRP Trust” application was fake. 

The entity that applied likely rode the wave of market optimism surrounding the approval of several spot Bitcoin ETF filings. XRP shed its brief gains following BlackRock’s announcement.

What Could Prop Up the XRP Price

XRP’s potential as a store of value is affected by its centralized nature. However, it has found useful applications in instant payments that could streamline transactions in countries like the US. The National Bank of Georgia tapped Ripple Labs as a technology partner for its central bank digital currency pilot.

Earlier this year, US Judge Analisa Torres overruled allegations by the US Securities and Exchange Commission that Ripple sold XRP as unregistered securities. She said sales to institutional investors, not retail investors, constituted unregistered securities offerings. The SEC was denied the option to appeal the ruling.

Read more: Everything You Need To Know About Ripple vs SEC

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