XRP Price Crash 24.6% After Ripple Unlocks $1.1 Billion in Tokens

Yesterday, Ripple unlocked at least 400 million XRP, valued at around $1.136 billion. In the last 24 hours alone, the price of XRP has dropped by over 24.6%.

What Actually Happened in the XRP Market?

As part of Ripple’s routine monthly token release from escrow, yesterday, at least 400 million XRP, worth nearly $1.136 billion, were unlocked. The development was initially brought to attention by Whale Alert.

The XRP market’s daily chart shows that it took no time for investors to respond to the development. In the last 24 hours alone, the XRP market has declined by at least 24.6%.

Does All the Unlocked XRP Enter the Market?

Highlighting the unique unlock process of Ripple, reports state that not all the unlocked XRP tokens entered the market yesterday. Experts familiar with Ripple’s unlock process explain that Ripple generally uses just 20 to 25% of the tokens released during an unlock session.

What Happens to the Remaining XRP?

Experts add that Ripple locks back the remaining tokens in the custody account. In simple terms, this is how the XRP unlock process works: Ripple unlocks a set amount of XRP from escrow, sells around 20% to 25% of the unlocked tokens to institutions, exchanges, or for strategic partnerships, and locks the rest back into escrow, extending the release schedule to future months.

Why Does Ripple Do This?

It is to manage supply, promate stability and fund operations that Ripple unlocks a specific amount of tokens every month. Additionally, to limit the impact of the unlock process, Ripple sells just a small portion of the unlocked XRP and locks back the rest.

XRP Market Overview

At the start of this year, the XRP market stood at around $2.0847. Between January 10 and 17, the market witnessed sharp growth of 45.01%. On January 16, the market touched a yearly peak of $3.3994. On January 19, the market sharply plummeted from $3.2721 to $2.9589.

Between January 20 and 31, the market stayed within the range. On February 1, the market sharply broke below the range. Since February 1, the market has experienced a decline of 26.15%. At one point today, the market fell as low as $1.7752. Currently, the market stands at $2.2409.

Ripple’s regular XRP unlock process aims to balance supply while supporting operations. Although large token releases can trigger price reactions, Ripple’s controlled approach – selling only a portion and re-locking the rest – helps manage long-term market stability.

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