NEW YORK, Jan 2, 2026, 1:42 PM ET — Regular session
- XRP rose about 6% to around $1.98, outperforming bitcoin and ether in early 2026 trading.
- Traders are watching Ripple’s Jan. 1 escrow unlock for follow-on wallet moves and potential supply impact.
- Macro risk appetite and delayed U.S. data releases are also in focus for crypto direction.
XRP was up 5.9% at $1.98 on Friday, pushing back toward the $2 level after swinging between $1.86 and $1.99. The token last closed at $1.87.
Traders pointed to Ripple’s scheduled January release from escrow — time‑locked XRP reserves on the XRP Ledger — as a key near-term catalyst. Blockchain tracker Whale Alert reported Ripple unlocked 1 billion XRP on Jan. 1 in three tranches, and past releases are often followed by transactions that return unused tokens to new escrow contracts, U.Today reported.
The timing matters because the first session of the year can bring thin liquidity and sharp repositioning, making large, supply-linked transfers more market-moving than usual. XRP tends to react quickly when investors think fresh tokens might reach exchanges.
Broader risk appetite remained in focus as U.S. stocks were mixed on the first trading day of 2026. “You’re waiting to see … what’s going to be … the vibe for the coming year,” said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt, as investors looked ahead to delayed U.S. data releases that could influence Federal Reserve expectations. Reuters
Bitcoin rose 1.2% to $88,844, while ether — the token of the Ethereum network — gained 3.4% to $3,044, keeping the tone broadly supportive for major crypto assets.
On-chain activity also picked up. Data from XRPL explorer Bithomp showed several Ripple-labelled addresses among the biggest senders over the past 24 hours, with transfers ranging into the hundreds of millions of XRP.
Investors often read large transfers as a proxy for distribution, liquidity management or internal reshuffling, even when intent is unclear. For XRP, that scrutiny is heightened around escrow releases because the headline unlock size can look like a supply shock even if much of it ends up re-escrowed.
The $2 area is now the near-term line in the sand for traders, with any failure to break above it likely to pull attention back to the day’s $1.86 low. A clean push through $2 would be watched as a sign that buyers are absorbing supply concerns.
What comes next is likely to be dictated by two moving parts: follow-on Ripple wallet activity after the Jan. 1 unlock, and the broader tone in rates and equities as U.S. data resumes. Crypto trades around the clock, but sharp moves often cluster around U.S. macro releases and liquidity windows.
XRP’s price has also been sensitive to regulation around Ripple’s business and token sales. A U.S. judge ruled that XRP sold on digital-asset exchanges was not a security, while Ripple’s direct sales to institutional investors violated securities laws, Reuters Practical Law reported.
For now, the latest rally leaves XRP moving in step with bitcoin and ether while trading with its own supply story in the background. That mix can amplify volatility on both good and bad headlines.
Investors will be watching for on-chain signals that tokens are recycled back into escrow rather than moved to trading venues, and whether XRP can hold gains if risk appetite fades.
