NEW YORK, Feb 5, 2026, 13:38 EST — Regular session
XRP tumbled sharply on Thursday, shedding roughly 19% in the last 24 hours to hover around $1.22. The token fluctuated between $1.22 and $1.55 during that time, amid widespread selling across key cryptocurrencies. 1
This shift is significant now as crypto faces pressure alongside other high-volatility assets. When investors retreat, smaller tokens tend to swing sharply and crash more brutally.
Bitcoin dropped to $66,675, its lowest since October 2024, while ether slid over 7%. The global crypto market has shed $2 trillion since peaking in early October, according to CoinGecko. Deutsche Bank analysts highlighted more than $3 billion in outflows from U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs during January. “It’s clear the crypto market is now in full capitulation mode,” said Nic Puckrin, co-founder of Coin Bureau. Meanwhile, Julius Baer strategist Manuel Villegas Franceschi noted “the market fears a hawk” with President Donald Trump’s pick of Kevin Warsh for Federal Reserve chair. 2
Warsh’s nomination is now a hot topic in Washington. Senate Banking Committee Democrats urged Republican chair Tim Scott to push back the hearings, pointing to Justice Department investigations into Fed Chair Jerome Powell and Governor Lisa Cook. The White House stood by Warsh, calling his credentials “unimpeachable.” 3
Data from CoinGlass revealed that roughly $52 million worth of XRP futures were liquidated in the last 24 hours, triggered by margin calls on leveraged positions. Open interest, tracking total outstanding futures contracts, hovered near $2.44 billion. 4
Ripple, which incorporates XRP in some operations, revealed Wednesday that it has integrated decentralized derivatives platform Hyperliquid into Ripple Prime, its institutional prime brokerage service. This move allows clients to tap into onchain derivatives liquidity and manage “cross-margin” DeFi positions—using a single collateral pool to support various exposures—across different assets, the company said. 5
But this tape can flip fast. A quieter spell in stocks or a change in Fed tightening bets might lure short-term buyers back. On the other hand, if bitcoin dives again, expect more forced selling in high-beta tokens such as XRP.
Traders are now watching how fast Warsh’s nomination clears Capitol Hill and what impact that will have on liquidity, ahead of the Fed’s policy meeting on March 17-18. For the moment, markets are stuck pricing the same question they’ve faced all week: how much leverage remains in the system and at what pace it will unwind. 6
