XRP shed more than $11 billion in market value overnight, slipping from a capitalization of $179.39 billion on September 21 to just $168.35 billion by September 22.
The token trades at $2.81, marking its sharpest single-day drop since July and reinforcing the fragility of altcoin momentum in a market dominated once again by Bitcoin.
The decline followed the euphoric launch of the REX-Osprey XRP ETF (XRPR), which had attracted a record $37.7 million in first-day volume only days earlier. While the debut was hailed as a milestone for regulated XRP exposure, it also created the conditions for a classic “buy the rumor, sell the news” dynamic.
Traders who had positioned heavily ahead of the launch used the liquidity window to lock in gains, amplifying the pullback as leveraged long positions were unwound. More than $1.7 billion in crypto derivatives were liquidated across the market, with nearly 90% of those positions coming from the long side.
On-chain activity pointed to renewed whale involvement. Data showed transfers worth more than $800 million in XRP executed in recent sessions, moving between anonymous wallets at a time when liquidity was already thinning. Whether these flows represent accumulation or distribution remains unclear, but the immediate impact has been to rattle sentiment, particularly as XRP failed to defend the key $3.00 threshold.
Technically, XRP price has struggled to sustain breakouts above $3, with repeated rejections turning that level into firm resistance. The slide below short-term moving averages coincided with a weakening MACD histogram and an RSI retreating from bullish territory. With $2.80 now emerging as the immediate support zone, traders warn that a decisive break lower could expose the token to further declines toward $2.60.
The pullback has also been magnified by broader market weakness. Bitcoin dropped 2.54% in the past 24 hours to $112,745, underperforming the crypto market’s overall decline of 3.72%. Ethereum retreated alongside, reinforcing the view that XRP’s drop is not isolated but part of a wider correction tied to profit-taking and shifting macro expectations.
Despite the setback, XRP’s ETF debut remains a significant marker for institutional adoption. The question is whether that long-term narrative will outweigh the short-term volatility triggered by traders unwinding positions.
With Bitcoin dominance climbing back to 57.73%, capital is rotating away from riskier altcoins, and XRP will need to hold the $2.80 floor to avoid deeper losses.
