Key Highlights
- XRP falls to $1.37 after rising from below $1.00 to nearly $1.70, while derivatives sellers remain stronger than buyers.
- Binance’s Taker Buy/Sell Ratio is 0.92, showing that buying pressure has not yet taken control of the market.
- Analyst Celal Kucuker sees a bullish breakout, with targets of $2.50, $3.50, $6, and eventually $13 if XRP continues higher.
XRP’s recovery is facing fresh pressure as sellers remain more active than buyers in the derivatives market, even after the token climbed from below $1.00 to nearly $1.70 in a month before pulling back.
As of August 31, XRP is trading for $1.37, while Binance’s Taker Buy/Sell Ratio stands at 0.92, showing that buyers have yet to take control.
XRP rally meets strong selling pressure
The latest data from CryptoQuant shows a gap between XRP’s price recovery and activity in the derivatives market.
The token has gained ground from its earlier low, but the Taker Buy/Sell Ratio remains below 1. This means more selling activity is taking place than buying activity among derivatives traders.
The ratio is important because it gives a quick look at how aggressive buyers and sellers are. When it is above 1, buying activity is stronger.
When it stays below 1, sellers are more active. XRP’s current reading of 0.92 therefore suggests that the recent recovery has not yet brought the strong buying pressure that could support another major move.
XRP’s market capitalization pulls back
XRP’s market capitalization tells a similar story. It surged from around $87.4 billion to almost $107 billion by August 22 before falling to about $86.4 billion, according to data from CoinMarketCap. The decline followed XRP’s move to around $1.69 and shows that some of the strength behind the earlier rally has faded.
XRP now trades in the $1.35-$1.40 range, an important short-term area within the Ichimoku indicator, a chart tool traders use to identify price trends and support and resistance levels.” A move above this zone, together with a Taker Buy/Sell Ratio above 1, would show stronger support from buyers.
Derivatives trading remains heavy
The derivatives market has also become much larger than the spot market. According to Coinglass data as of August 31 (5:17 PM UTC), XRP futures open interest is down a modest 3.07% to $3.21 billion, while 24-hour derivatives volume is up around 90.20% to $4.63 billion.
This shows how much trading activity has been taking place through futures and other derivatives products during the recovery.
Leverage also rose during the move higher. Coinglass data also shows that the estimated leverage ratio reached 0.193, close to the six-month high of 0.213. That higher leverage later led to a sharp clean-up, with long liquidations reaching $25.7 million on August 22, the largest one-day figure in six months.
Analyst sees a bigger XRP breakout
Meanwhile, crypto analyst Celal Kucuker has identified a different signal on XRP’s price chart. His analysis focuses on a falling wedge, a pattern that formed while XRP was going through its long correction from its previous high.
During this period, XRP continued to make lower moves, but the trading range became narrower as the correction developed.
His chart places $2.50 as the first target, followed by $3.50, $6 and eventually $13. Before those levels come into focus, XRP would need to reclaim $2.42, its 2026 peak.
Kucuker believes the pattern has now broken to the upside. In simple terms, XRP moved above the upper line of the falling wedge, which is the key part of the setup he is watching. He described the correction as “perfect” and called the move above the downtrend “a beautiful breakout from the downtrend.”
The breakout is important to Kucuker because it could mark a change from the long correction to another upward move. However, his chart does not show XRP moving straight to the highest target. Instead, it maps out several price levels that XRP would have to reach along the way.
The first major area is $2.42, which was XRP’s 2026 peak after its strong move in January. Kucuker’s first target is slightly higher at $2.50. If XRP can reach that level, the next targets on his chart are $3.50 and then $6.
The chart also points to the area around $3.65, which is close to the previous all-time high cited in the source material. This means XRP would need to move through several major price levels before the higher targets become relevant.
Kucuker’s highest target is $13, but that level appears highly optimistic compared with XRP’s current price and market conditions. In short, he presents it as the final level in the long-term path shown on his chart, rather than as a price XRP has already confirmed it will reach. His view is based on the falling-wedge breakout developing into a much larger upward move.
For now, the technical setup is only one part of the XRP story. The token still trades near $1.36, while derivatives sellers remain stronger than buyers.
The $1.35-$1.40 area is therefore important in the short term, as a break below it could weaken the recovery, while stronger buying and a Taker Buy/Sell Ratio above 1 would provide better support for further gains. This means Kucuker’s higher targets remain dependent on XRP first proving that buyers are ready to take control.
Also Read: Monero (XMR) Price Surges 47% in Month: Analysis, Prediction, and What’s Next?
