The cryptocurrency market has reacted with unexpected coldness to one of the most anticipated events of the year. This caused the XRP price falls below $2 during the opening day of its new fund.
Despite the high expectations generated by the launch of the Bitwise product on the New York Stock Exchange, the asset did not hold. The token retreated quickly toward levels observed during the October correction.
Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple CEO, celebrated the institutional milestone calling it a “pre-Thanksgiving rush.” However, reality on the charts showed a temporary disconnect between corporate advancement and the price action.
The debut of Bitwise’s financial instrument recorded a quite respectable trading volume on its first day. It reached $22 million with three hours left until the session close, according to data from James Seyffart.
This figure positions the fund as a solid competitor within the growing crypto derivatives market. Although it remains behind the impressive record set by Canary Capital the previous week.
However, this institutional capital flow was not enough to counter the generalized selling pressure seen today. This situation was exacerbated by a sudden Bitcoin plunge below the $87,000 level.
This sharp move by the market leader liquidated over $220 million in leveraged long positions. The entire sector suffered the negative impact within a single hour of intense trading operations.
Why is price dropping if institutional adoption is growing?
The current paradox is explained by analyzing the behavior of large holders and the profitability structure. Glassnode data reveals that the percentage of XRP supply in profit has plummeted recently.
Specifically, it fell to 58.5%, its lowest level since November 2024, generating concern among analysts. This indicates that the market has become structurally fragile and dependent on late buyers who entered due to euphoria.
These retail investors now face significant unrealized losses due to the asset value’s abrupt drop. Furthermore, it was reported that “whales” aggressively sold around 200 million tokens in the open market.
These massive sales occurred strategically in the 48 hours surrounding the launch of the financial product. They took advantage of the liquidity generated by the event to exit their positions and secure previous profits quickly.
Experts suggest that the negative short-term reaction responds to the classic “sell the news” phenomenon. Speculative retail investors exit the market just as the fundamental event they were waiting for materializes.
On the other hand, institutions usually adopt a much more methodical and slow buying strategy. They prefer to accumulate assets during dips rather than chasing high prices driven by momentary emotion.
Therefore, it is likely that the true impact of these regulated capital flows will not be fully reflected now. The token’s valuation could take until well into 2026 to react positively and sustainably.
This will happen once asset managers have built their strategic positions with calm and patience. The underlying blockchain technology remains robust, but institutional timelines differ from retail ones.
The loss of the psychological $2 support places XRP in a very delicate technical zone. This forces traders to closely watch upcoming support levels to avoid further losses.
