NEW YORK, Jan 19, 2026, 12:15 PM EST — Market closed
XRP stayed close to $2 on Monday, dipping below that mark earlier amid a risk-off wave hitting cryptocurrencies and other risk assets. It dropped roughly 2% to $2.01, bouncing between a high of $2.06 and a low of $1.93. Bitcoin and ether also slid lower.
Selling pressure hit after weekend reports that U.S. President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on several European nations—a move traders warn might ripple through markets once liquidity picks up. “Markets at this point are expected to reopen this week in ‘risk-off’ mode,” said Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG in Sydney. 1
U.S. stock and bond markets remained closed Monday for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday, limiting price discovery while crypto markets kept moving nonstop. Traders said they expect a clearer picture when Wall Street kicks back into gear Tuesday. 2
For XRP, the $2 level serves as a key round-number barrier, often attracting quick traders. Once it slips below that point, many see it as a cue that buying momentum is fading.
The move can trigger stop orders and force leveraged traders to sell. Liquidation happens when a trader fails to meet margin requirements, forcing the position to close.
XRP remains closely linked to Ripple, the crypto firm focused on payments that has battled regulators for years over the token’s classification under U.S. securities law. In August 2025, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced it was dropping its lawsuit against Ripple, leaving a $125 million fine in place and easing a legal cloud that had weighed on XRP trading for years. 3
Ripple has aimed to tame XRP’s supply for years, partly by locking big chunks into on-ledger escrow and rolling out tokens on a set timetable. Back in 2017, Ripple-linked XRPL documentation spelled out that the escrow was set to release 1 billion XRP every month, with any leftover amounts generally locked up again for future use. 4
Despite that, XRP behaves like a high-beta asset: it tends to drop alongside the broader crypto market when macro uncertainty spikes, rather than reacting to news specific to the token. Bitcoin slipped roughly 2% during the day, while ether lost over 3%.
A major risk remains that tariff headlines will intensify through February, squeezing financial conditions and sparking another round of forced selling in risk assets. On the other hand, if the rhetoric cools off, buyers could return fast—especially if bitcoin holds steady and volatility drops.
Traders are eyeing whether XRP can maintain its grip on the $2 level as U.S. markets reopen Tuesday, while waiting to see if upcoming tariff signals shift the broader risk sentiment before Feb. 1.
