XRP made a notable 3% move upward following Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s hint at a potential interest rate cut in September, fueling broader optimism across the cryptocurrency market. Bitcoin and other top digital assets also saw gains in the wake of Powell’s remarks.

Institutional Selling and On-Chain Surge

Despite the short-term rally, XRP faced significant turbulence due to heavy institutional activity. Within the two-day span from August 21 to 22, approximately 470 million XRP tokens were sold across key exchanges, triggering a dramatic spike in trading volume and stiff resistance at the $2.92 level.

In contrast, XRP’s underlying adoption appeared to be growing. On August 18, on-chain settlement activity soared by 500%, reaching 844 million tokens — one of the highest volumes recorded this year. This suggests increasing usage of the XRP Ledger (XRPL), even amid selling pressure.

However, headwinds came from regulatory delays. The SEC postponed decisions on several XRP-related exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications, including a much-anticipated filing from Nasdaq’s CoinShares. These decisions have now been pushed to October, clouding investor sentiment further.

Adding to the bearish outlook, a security audit ranked XRPL at the bottom of a list of 15 blockchain networks, raising concerns about its overall robustness and potentially denting its value proposition to institutional investors.

XRP Price Behavior and Market Reactions

The 24-hour period ending August 22 at 12:00 p.m. saw XRP slipping from $2.89 to $2.80 — a 3.1% drop overall. Throughout this period, the token moved within a $0.12 range, equating to approximately 4.25% in price volatility.

The most intense price rejection occurred at 7:00 p.m. on August 21, when XRP attempted to break through resistance at $2.92. This rejection coincided with a sharp volume increase of 69.1 million tokens traded, reinforcing that this level remains a major ceiling.

By the conclusion of the session, in the hour spanning 11:24 to 12:23 p.m. on August 22, XRP dropped a further 2.5% from $2.82 to $2.80 with another volume spike to 7.2 million. This late-session dip signaled continued bearish momentum. Support was observed around the $2.80 to $2.85 range, but each retest weakened this zone, suggesting waning buyer confidence.

Chart Insights and Technical Outlook

Technicals confirmed that $2.92 has solidified as a resistance zone after repeated rejections. Meanwhile, the $2.80 to $2.85 range is trying to offer support, but is increasingly fragile.

The trading range of $0.12 over a one-day period highlighted narrow volatility relative to large-cap token activity, but the concentration of volume near resistance points to a potential breakout — or breakdown — on any major news.

Volume also escalated during final-hour trading to 96 million tokens, a clear confirmation of bearish pressure continuing to weigh on XRP’s short-term price outlook.

Key Market Focus Areas

Market watchers are closely monitoring several key points related to XRP’s performance:

• Whether the $2.80 level can continue holding as a firm support. A decisive breakdown could lead to additional losses down to the $2.75 region.
• News flow on ETF applications, particularly heading into October, as institutional capital may hinge on regulatory clarity.
• Patterns of large holder (whale) accumulation. Although on-chain data suggests adoption growth, these fundamentals have yet to reflect in price stability or recovery.
• The $2.92–$3.00 corridor, which traders see as a potential breakout zone that could return XRP to bullish territory.

Technical chart of XRP showing key resistance and support zones amid high trading volume.

Related: XRP Price: $12M Max Pain for Bears

While optimism sparked by macroeconomic signals like Powell’s rate suggestion may give XRP some momentum, internal challenges and regulatory delays continue to cloud its mid-term outlook. Trader sentiment hinges on key levels holding steady and the outcome of October ETF reviews.