XRP Price Today, December 2, 2025: Ripple’s Token Battles to Hold $2 as ETFs Grow and Whales Reshuffle

XRP is trading around $2.10–$2.20 this afternoon (Dec. 2, 2025), having whipsawed around the key $2.00 support after an early‑session dip triggered by fresh Ripple escrow activity and a risk‑off mood across crypto. Major data providers show XRP near $2.16, up roughly 6–7% in the last 24 hours, with a market cap in the $120–130 billion range and 24‑hour volume around $4.2 billion. ^[1]

At the same time, spot XRP ETFs in the US have already attracted hundreds of millions of dollars in assets, and Vanguard’s decision today to allow XRP and other crypto funds on its platform marks a symbolic shift in mainstream access to the token. ^[2]

Below is a detailed look at how XRP is trading today, what’s driving the move, and what the latest December 2, 2025forecasts and analyses are saying.

1. XRP price today: snapshot for December 2, 2025

Spot price: Around $2.15–$2.16 at the time of writing
24h range: Roughly $1.99 – $2.16, with sub‑$2 dips bought up so far ^[3]
24h performance: Up mid‑single digits versus yesterday’s close near $2.03 ^[4]
Market cap: ~$125–130 billion, keeping XRP firmly inside the global top‑five crypto assets ^[5]
24h volume: Around $4.2 billion, indicating active two‑way trading ^[6]

Across major exchanges and aggregators, XRP is consistently quoted near $2.05–$2.16 today, with CoinMarketCap flagging a 7% daily gain and classifying sentiment as bearish amid “Extreme Fear” on its crypto Fear & Greed index. ^[7]

Meanwhile, CoinDesk’s intraday market update notes that XRP slipped to about $2.02 earlier as altcoins lagged Bitcoin during a risk‑off session, underscoring how sensitive the token remains to broader market swings. ^[8]

2. Today’s biggest XRP news drivers (December 2, 2025)

2.1 Vanguard finally opens the door to XRP ETFs

One of the most significant headlines today is Vanguard’s ETF pivot. The $11 trillion asset manager will now allow spot crypto ETFs — including funds holding Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP and Solana — to trade on its brokerage platform starting today. ^[9]

Key points:

Vanguard’s decision gives over 50 million brokerage clients access to regulated crypto ETFs, even though the firm still says it has no plans to launch its own crypto products. ^[10]
Data from SoSoValue summarized by DL News shows spot XRP ETFs have already drawn about $756 million in inflows since launching on November 13, outpacing Solana ETFs over a similar period. ^[11]
A separate analysis from CoinCentral calculates that US spot XRP ETFs now hold about 318 million XRP, with total ETF exposure to the asset nearing $775 million when ancillary products are included. ^[12]

Together, these developments reinforce a core narrative in today’s commentary: institutional and ETF demand is quietly growing even as spot price struggles around $2.

2.2 Ripple expands XRP payments into Africa’s largest market

On the adoption side, Ripple announced a fresh corridor for XRP‑powered payments into Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy and one of the world’s most active crypto markets. ^[13]

Fintech firm RedotPay has integrated Ripple Payments to power instant “Send Crypto, Receive NGN” payouts, letting users send assets like XRP, BTC, USDT and others and receive Nigerian naira directly into local bank accounts. ^[14]
The partnership builds on RedotPay’s existing “send crypto, receive fiat” services in Mexico and Brazil, and Ripple notes that Nigeria’s fast‑growing, regulation‑constrained crypto user base makes it a prime testbed for low‑cost cross‑border settlement. ^[15]

For analysts tracking fundamentals, this is one of the clearest “real‑world utility” headlines for XRP today, reinforcing why banks and payment companies continue to build on the XRP Ledger despite price volatility.

2.3 Escrow moves and the brief loss of the $2 handle

Early today, traders were jolted by news that Ripple had moved a total of 1.2 billion XRP, including an apparent 500 million XRP release that coincided with XRP slipping below $2.00. ^[16]

Reports from U.Today and CoinCentral outline the sequence:

Ripple pulled 300M XRP and 200M XRP back from internal wallets.
It then locked 300M XRP and 400M XRP into escrow, cycling tokens in a pattern that repeats at the start of each month. ^[17]
The total 1.2B XRP in motion lined up almost exactly with the moment XRP slipped from the mid‑$2.20s into the upper‑$1.90s, briefly losing the $2.00 price tag before recovering. ^[18]

On‑chain watchers continue to debate whether this was “routine” escrow management or effectively new supply hitting markets at a fragile moment. Either way, the move is part of why technical analysts emphasise the psychological importance of the $2.00 level today.

2.4 Whale behavior: fewer big wallets, more XRP in them

Fresh on‑chain data published today by CoinCentral shows that XRP whale holdings have surged to 48 billion tokens, the highest level since 2018, even though the number of whale wallets has fallen by about 20.6% in recent weeks. ^[19]

Addresses holding at least 100 million XRP dropped from 2,757 in September to about 2,189 by late November.
Despite that, these addresses now control about 48 billion XRP, suggesting large holders are consolidating balances into fewer wallets rather than exiting completely. ^[20]

Analysts quoted in the piece see this as a potentially constructive signal — big players appear to be absorbing coins even as price stumbles — but they also warn that concentrated holdings can amplify volatility if those wallets choose to sell later.

3. Technical view: XRP stuck below key moving averages

A detailed daily and intraday breakdown from Cryptonomist this morning describes XRP as being in a “weakness phase” despite short‑term attempts to stabilize around $2.00. ^[21]

3.1 Daily chart

According to that analysis:

XRP is trading near $2.01–$2.02, below its 20‑, 50‑ and 200‑day exponential moving averages, which sit around $2.17, $2.32 and $2.54 respectively. ^[22]
The RSI on the daily chart hovers just under 40, signaling seller control but not outright capitulation.
The MACD is flat and negative, implying a slow, grinding bearish trend rather than a sharp crash. ^[23]
Bollinger Bands are relatively tight, with the middle band near $2.14, upper around $2.36 and lower near $1.93 — XRP is currently trading in the lower half of this channel. ^[24]

3.2 Intraday levels to watch

On shorter timeframes, the same report and several trading desks highlight a handful of crucial zones for today: ^[25]

Immediate support:
- $2.00–$2.02: the “intraday watershed” where bulls and bears are fighting.
- $1.93: lower Bollinger band and next key daily support if $2 fails.
Near‑term resistance:
- $2.04–$2.14: overlaps with pivot levels and the 20‑day EMA; a close above here would be the first sign of easing bearish control.
- $2.20–$2.30: cited by multiple analysts as a heavier resistance cluster and liquidation zone.
Higher resistance:
- $2.58–$2.75: starts to come into play if XRP breaks $2.30; in recent forecasts, technicians have flagged $2.75as a line in the sand that, if reclaimed, would open a path toward $3.00. ^[26]

For now, the consensus from today’s technical pieces is that XRP remains in a defensive posture, with bears in control so long as price stays under the short‑term moving averages and below roughly $2.20. ^[27]

4. Why XRP didn’t explode in 2025 – and why some still think it will in 2026

A widely shared CryptoBasic analysis published today takes a step back from the intraday noise and asks: if XRP rallied nearly 290% across November–December 2024, why is it now on track to finish 2025 roughly flat and hovering near $2? ^[28]

Market commentator Zach Rector lays out three main reasons: ^[29]

Late resolution of the SEC lawsuit
- The high‑profile SEC vs. Ripple case didn’t fully end until August 2025, when the agency officially dropped its remaining appeals and left in place a $125 million civil penalty and injunction related to institutional XRP sales. ^[30]
- That meant a cloud of regulatory uncertainty hung over XRP for most of the year, limiting institutional and US exchange activity even as other coins rallied.
Delayed XRP ETFs
- Issuers waited for legal clarity before pushing ahead with spot XRP ETFs.
- A US government shutdown further delayed SEC reviews, pushing the first US‑listed XRP ETF — Canary Capital’s XRPC on Nasdaq — to November 13, with Bitwise, Grayscale and Franklin Templeton following afterward. ^[31]
- By the time these products launched and began attracting significant inflows, 2025 was almost over.
The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act is still pending
- The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025 passed the House but remains stuck in the Senate, where lawmakers are still negotiating final language on when tokens count as securities and how exchanges should be supervised. ^[32]
- Many investors had expected this bill to “lock in” a friendlier regulatory regime for XRP and other large caps by mid‑year; instead, it has become another source of wait‑and‑see caution.

Rector’s conclusion: XRP may simply be running a year behind the bullish script, with much of the hoped‑for rerating now pushed into 2026 instead of 2025. ^[33]

5. Fresh forecasts and models published on December 2, 2025

A wave of price prediction pieces dated today try to answer the same question traders are asking: what happens next for XRP now that it is clinging to $2?

5.1 Conservative to moderate short‑term forecasts

ChatGPT vs Wall Street analysts (24/7 Wall St.)
A late‑November article now widely cited in December notes that an AI model (ChatGPT) projected around $2.02 for early December, while human crypto analysts targeted $2.70–$2.85 for December 2025, arguing that ETF inflows and growing banking adoption could support a year‑end rally. ^[34]
Pintu’s “5 facts” article (Dec. 2)
Indonesian platform Pintu, summarizing these forecasts today, highlights that:
- XRP is currently near $2.00, an important psychological base.
- Some analysts see a bullish scenario with a move to $2.85 by the end of December 2025, but note that this path is “not easy” and would require a friendlier macro backdrop and stronger volume. ^[35]
Changelly’s updated prediction (Dec. 2)
Changelly’s fresh XRP outlook shows:
- Current real‑time price around $2.05
- A bearish technical reading (Fear & Greed at “Extreme Fear”)
- A December trading range clustered roughly between $1.99 (min) and $2.30 (max), with an average near $2.15. ^[36]

Overall, these conservative forecasts argue that flat to mildly higher prices around $2–$2.30 are the most likely near‑term outcome unless the macro environment or ETF flows change dramatically.

5.2 Bullish analyst camp: $2.70–$2.85 and beyond

Several pieces published or updated today continue to highlight a more optimistic scenario:

Analyst targets around $2.85
Both Pintu and 24/7 Wall St. emphasize that a cluster of analyst targets sits in the $2.70–$2.85 zone for December, contingent on continued ETF inflows and a constructive broader crypto rebound. ^[37]
Historical seasonality
A December round‑up cited in TS2’s analysis notes that XRP’s average historical December return is an eye‑catching +69%, but the median is slightly negative, because the average is heavily skewed by the 2017 mania. Recent Decembers (2023 and 2024) saw far more modest gains in the low‑single‑digit range. TechStock²
Altseason narratives
In a December 1 article, an analyst profiled by CryptoBasic argues that the next major altcoin cycle in 2026 could be “10x bigger for XRP” than prior cycles, positioning current price action as a pre‑cycle re‑accumulation zonerather than a top. ^[38]

Even bullish commentators, however, caution that breaking above $2.75–$3.00 would likely require a combination of:

A softer macro backdrop (lower rates / friendlier risk sentiment)
Sustained ETF inflows
Clearer global regulation and continued real‑world adoption (like today’s Nigeria corridor news)

5.3 Extreme “moonshot” scenarios

At the more speculative end of today’s coverage:

A CryptoBasic model explores how XRP could, in theory, reach three‑digit prices (e.g., $600) if XRP ETFs absorbed about 74.5 million XRP per day over an extended period and market “elasticity” were high. ^[39]
Simulated paths in that model show XRP moving from ~$2 toward $3–$7 in lower‑elasticity scenarios and exponentially higher in more aggressive assumptions — but the author is careful to note that these are sensitivity experiments, not base‑case predictions. ^[40]

These pieces have attracted social media attention but should be viewed as thought experiments, not actionable forecasts. Even the original authors stress that such outcomes would require extraordinary ETF demand and favorable conditions that go well beyond today’s reality.

6. On‑chain and sentiment: fear at the surface, accumulation underneath

Aggregated data from CoinMarketCap AI and on‑chain analytics referenced in today’s TS2 and CoinCentral coverage paints a nuanced picture: TechStock²+2CoinCentral+2

Mid‑sized “whales” (1M+ XRP) have reportedly offloaded billions of tokens in recent weeks, contributing to the 18% drop in November and continued selling pressure into early December.
Mega‑whales (100M+ XRP), by contrast, now hold around 48 billion XRP, their largest combined balance since 2018, even as the number of such addresses has fallen. ^[41]
Spot XRP ETFs have seen steady inflows since mid‑November with no sustained net outflows, now controlling somewhere in the $650–$750 million range of XRP exposure across issuers like Canary, Bitwise, Franklin Templeton and Grayscale. ^[42]
Sentiment feeds summarized by CMC AI show a bearish crowd bias and models that warn of up to ~40–45% downside if the $2 level fails decisively — yet ETF flows and whale consolidation suggest a quiet, longer‑term bid beneath the surface. ^[43]

In short, retail and mid‑sized traders are scared; some large players and structured products are still buying dips.

7. Key risks and catalysts for XRP after today

Based on today’s news, forecasts and on‑chain data, traders and longer‑term holders are watching a few major themes for the rest of December:

Does XRP hold $2 on a daily closing basis?
- A clean breakdown below $1.99–$2.00 could invite algorithmic selling and open room toward $1.93, then possibly $1.77 if broader markets stay weak. ^[44]
Can price reclaim the $2.20–$2.30 resistance band?
- This zone lines up with short‑term moving averages, intraday liquidation clusters and prior breakdown levels. Regaining and holding it would be one of the first convincing signs of a bullish momentum shift. ^[45]
ETF flows vs. whale distribution
- If spot XRP ETFs continue to add tens of millions of dollars per day while large holders consolidate, sell pressure around $2 may gradually be absorbed.
- Conversely, if whale offloading continues at the pace seen in November, ETF demand may not be enough to offset it in the short term. ^[46]
Regulatory headlines
- Any progress — or setback — on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, or new guidance from the SEC and CFTC, could quickly reprice XRP’s regulatory risk premium. ^[47]
Macro and Bitcoin correlation
- Coindesk and others note that with Bitcoin still dominating over half of total crypto market cap, altcoins like XRP remain heavily correlated to BTC’s direction. Sharp BTC moves around $80k–$90k continue to drive most of the intraday swings in XRP. ^[48]

8. Bottom line: XRP at a $2 crossroads

As of December 2, 2025, the story of “XRP price today” looks like a tug‑of‑war:

Price: hovering just above $2, up modestly on the day but down from last month’s highs. ^[49]
Short‑term picture: charts tilted bearish, price pinned below key moving averages, sentiment stuck in “Extreme Fear”, and mid‑sized whales still distributing. ^[50]
Medium‑to‑long‑term picture: lawsuit resolved, new payment corridors (like Nigeria) coming online, spot XRP ETFs attracting hundreds of millions of dollars, and mega‑whales consolidating a seven‑year‑high 48B XRP. ^[51]

Whether XRP spends December grinding sideways near $2, drifting lower toward the mid‑$1 range, or catching a year‑end bounce toward $2.50–$2.85 will depend largely on how that tension resolves:
Can structural demand from ETFs, institutions and new payment corridors outweigh cautious sentiment and ongoing sell pressure from traders who spent 2025 waiting for a bigger breakout?

One thing all of today’s analyses share is a reminder worth repeating:

This is not financial advice.
Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile, and you can lose all the capital you invest. Always do your own research and consider speaking with a licensed financial professional before making investment decisions.