In a remarkable turn of events, the XRP price has experienced a staggering ascent, climbing an impressive 110% over the past week. This noteworthy surge has propelled XRP beyond the crucial $1.00 psychological resistance level. What makes this feat even more astonishing is that it has unfolded amidst substantial selling pressure, with Ripple—the token’s largest holder—offloading a significant 3 billion XRP in 2024 alone.
Breaking Down the Recent XRP Surge
XRP’s performance in the crypto market has been nothing short of extraordinary. Month-to-date, the token has surged by an astounding 123%, following Ripple’s unprecedented decision to execute its largest monthly sell-off in seven years. This involved reserving and deploying 470 million from the 1 billion XRP escrow unlock, as reported by Finbold.
So far in 2024, Ripple has reserved and spent a total of 3.046 billion XRP, which translates to over $3.46 billion at current market prices. Finbold has meticulously tracked and reported these sales throughout the year using the XRP Scan platform, closely monitoring the ‘Ripple (1)’ labeled account.
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XRP Sales Strategy: A Peek into Ripple’s Approach
Although Ripple hasn’t disclosed each sale individually, the company has consistently shared insights into its selling model. According to various sources, Ripple’s XRP sales are conducted through an On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) framework, selling at prevailing market prices to willing buyers.
What’s Next? Will Ripple Sell More XRP Soon?
Ripple holds one of the most substantial supply shares of any token within the crypto industry. Since 2012, the company has released over 56.93 billion XRP into circulation through its sales. Despite this, Ripple retains more than 4.43 billion XRP in liquid assets across multiple accounts, with some sales remaining undisclosed. Additionally, Ripple has secured over 38.90 billion XRP in escrows, with scheduled monthly unlocks for the next 42 months, as detailed in Ripple’s Q3 2024 market report.
At present market valuations, these holdings amount to $5 billion and $44 billion, respectively, and are expected to eventually make their way into the market. As of now, XRP is trading at $1.1375, reflecting an 80% increase year-to-date.
On October 21, Chris Larsen, co-founder and executive chairman of Ripple, announced a generous $10 million contribution to Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. Larsen stated:
“It’s time for the Democrats to have a new approach to tech innovation, including crypto. I believe Kamala Harris will ensure that American technology dominates the world, which is why I’m donating $10M in XRP in support of her.”
XRP Tokenomics: Ripple Holdings, Unlocks, and Sales from 2012 to 2024
The tokenomics of XRP are defined by a fixed supply of 100 billion tokens, all of which were created upon its launch in 2012. Unlike Bitcoin (BTC), XRP was entirely pre-mined and distributed arbitrarily, with no additional tokens to be generated in the future.
Initially, Ripple Labs held a substantial portion of these tokens. Between 2012 and 2017, there were concerns regarding Ripple’s sales of XRP, leading to apprehensions about potential impacts on the token’s value and market dynamics. In response to these concerns, Ripple implemented measures to enhance transparency and stability. In 2017, the company placed 55 billion XRP into cryptographic escrow accounts, releasing one billion XRP each month. Finbold has diligently covered all these recent developments since August 2023.
Essentially, Ripple utilizes a portion of these sales to cover operational expenses, invest in the XRP ecosystem, and generate profit for the team.
