XRP’s price crash earlier this week has kept many bullish investors in the XRP community on edge, but one outspoken voice in the community believes the move is not as random as it looks.Â
A crypto pundit known as Stellar Rippler has encouraged XRP holders to pull their cryptocurrencies off centralized exchanges immediately, with the outlook that the recent volatility is not just another routine market dip but a warning sign of what’s to come.
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Engineered XRP Crash?
Stellar Rippler’s position is based on the idea that XRP is being treated differently from most digital assets behind the scenes. He pointed to past remarks from David Schwartz, co-creator of the XRP Ledger, where XRP was described as a form of pre-allocated liquidity for institutional use, as well as statements suggesting that XRP currently held in escrow can be sold to institutions but will not be circulated until NDAs are disclosed.Â
He went further to name large financial players, including BlackRock, JPMorgan, Bank of America, and institutions linked to the BRICS, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and European central banking structures. According to the pundit, all these institutions have bought the right to buy the XRP currently held in escrow by Ripple.
At the time of writing, there are no public filings that confirm coordinated buying of XRP escrows by these entities, but the argument has found receptive ears among investors unsettled by the recent sell-off.
From that angle, the pundit noted that sudden downside moves, such as the recent drop to $1.15, are engineered. By “engineered,” this means the price crash serves a strategic purpose of creating opportunity for large financial players to accumulate XRP at lower prices before any market repricing takes place.
Should You Take Your XRP Off Exchanges?
Another part of the warning focused on user experience at major crypto exchanges. According to the pundit, Binance and Coinbase users have reportedly been facing difficulties getting their crypto off the exchanges. This, in itself, is a warning for XRP holders to get their cryptos off crypto exchanges and into a cold wallet. That message taps into conversation in crypto about self-custody versus keeping holdings on crypto exchanges.Â
Calls to be your own bank tend to resurface whenever price action turns volatile. The alarm was sounded against the backdrop of a Bitcoin price crash below $70,000 that pulled most cryptocurrencies lower. XRP, in particular, dipped to around $1.15 during the sell-off before rebounding.Â
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At the time of writing, XRP is trading near $1.42, easing some immediate pressure but not fully restoring confidence. On the subject of confidence, sentiment surrounding XRP on social media is relatively optimistic. Data shows XRP is drawing more positive commentary than other large-cap assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum despite the recent market-wide crash.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView