SINGAPORE, January 30, 2026, 19:27 SGT — Regular session
- Amid a wider crypto sell-off, XRP dropped as investors grappled with uncertainty over U.S. policy
- Risk assets are once again keyed in on the Fed chair succession and liquidity outlook
- Washington’s drive to regulate the crypto market ramps up ahead of a White House meeting scheduled for Monday
XRP dropped roughly 6.7% on Friday, hitting about $1.75 and edging toward the lower end of its 24-hour range amid broad selling across major cryptocurrencies. The token, linked to payments company Ripple, saw around $5.2 billion traded in the past day, according to CoinMarketCap data. 1
The selloff followed a broader risk-off wave in crypto after bitcoin and ether slid to two-month lows. Traders zeroed in on speculation that the next U.S. Federal Reserve chair might tighten financial conditions by shrinking the Fed’s bond holdings, draining liquidity from markets. Damien Boey, a portfolio strategist at Wilson Asset Management in Sydney, said, “As you start to talk about pulling the rug out from underneath that,” assets like gold and crypto can come under pressure. Sean Dawson at Derive.xyz pointed to “fears around AI exuberance” as another “big contributor” to Friday’s drop, triggered in part by Microsoft’s steep fall overnight. 2
President Donald Trump is set to announce Jerome Powell’s replacement as Fed Chair on Friday, following a White House meeting with former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, Reuters reported. This move thrusts the Fed’s next steps on rates and its balance sheet back into the spotlight. Warsh has pushed for a “regime change” at the central bank, advocating a leaner balance sheet—a position markets are closely weighing for its potential effects on liquidity and risk appetite. 3
Regulation remains a key flashpoint. On Thursday, a U.S. Senate committee pushed forward a crypto market-structure bill, but only along party lines. Its future looks uncertain in the full Senate, where it would need backing from Democrats to clear. The bill aims to grant the Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight of spot crypto markets — meaning immediate, cash-market trading — and introduce rules for exchanges, brokers, and dealers. 4
The White House is stepping up its involvement. It will host a meeting on Monday with banking and crypto leaders to try and resolve deadlocks around how legislation treats rewards on stablecoins, the dollar-pegged tokens crucial to many crypto trading pairs. Summer Mersinger, CEO of the Blockchain Association, said the group was “proud to participate” in the upcoming meeting. Digital Chamber CEO Cody Carbone added that the White House was “pulling all sides to the negotiating table.” 5
XRP often moves in step with Ripple’s fortunes, even though the token operates separately from the company. Ripple’s lengthy legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission finally wrapped up in 2025 when the SEC dropped the case. Ripple agreed to pay a $125 million fine, bringing one of crypto’s most closely watched enforcement disputes to a close. 6
Friday’s jump highlighted just how quickly XRP can shift when macro jitters kick in. Since crypto trades 24/7, weekend liquidity often thins out, which can sharpen price swings if key news breaks while fewer traders are watching.
The immediate threat is a whipsaw: an unexpected Fed move or unexpectedly dovish hints on rates and the balance sheet might spark a rapid bounce in high-beta tokens that took the initial hit. On the flip side, a stronger dollar, rising yields, and stalled legislation can easily keep speculative interest muted.
The next catalysts have firm dates: Trump’s Fed chair announcement comes Friday, followed by the White House meeting on Monday. Traders are focused on whether these events will alter expectations around liquidity and regulation — and, by extension, the risk premium baked into XRP’s price.
