XRP's Sluggish Payment Network: A Sign of Struggle or Hidden Opportunity?
XRP on-chain transactions plummet by 45% - Is it a sign of a bear market or a chance to invest?
Take a gander at XRP's [XRP] on-chain payments—they've plummeted a whopping 45% over the past year, with daily transactions currently scraping the bottom of their twelve-month range. But don't count this digital asset out just yet!
The slump in XRP's payment network has reignited an age-old question: is this a clear sign of bearish pressure, or an overlooked buying opportunity? Let's dive into the details.
Crunching the Numbers
Over the past year, XRP's payment volume has been on a downward spiral. The graph below shows a peak in transaction activity between November and December 2024, surging past the 2-3 billion XRP mark.
However, this enthusiasm was short-lived. Since January 2025, daily volumes struggle to climb above 1 billion XRP. Recent levels are teetering on the edge of the year's range, and brief upticks in February and April did little to halt the trend.
These consistent dips suggest dwindling user engagement and capital flows across the XRP Ledger, prompting concerns about the waning interest of both institutions and retail investors.
Are the Bears Really Winning?
The drop in on-chain activity suggests a deeper, more persistent shift could be at play.
Day-to-day active addresses and transaction volume have remained choppy and subdued since early 2025, while network growth (at just 1,285 at press time) has dipped to close to all-time lows from highs above 20,000.
This stagnation hints at a decrease in user interest and possibly declining utility within Ripple's ecosystem.
The downturn aligns with major legal events, such as Ripple avoiding significant penalties in the August 2024 remedies phase but having their October appeals possibly discouraging developer and institutional engagement. Even after the SEC dropped its appeal in March 2025, activity failed to rebound significantly.
By mid-2025, legal clarity had yet to translate into renewed network momentum.
All's Not Lost!
There's potential for quiet accumulation despite the grim picture. For example, the recent resurgence in open interest in XRP derivatives on exchanges like Binance indicates a shift in market sentiment, with traders re-entering the market. This uptick in speculative positions could herald accumulation if accompanied by increasing trading activity and rising prices.
Furthermore, the funding rates on Binance turned negative during XRP's recent correction, potentially setting up conditions for a short squeeze. In a short squeeze, traders who have sold XRP shorts are forced to buy back their positions due to rising prices, potentially leading to dramatic price increases. This scenario might benefit from increased accumulation and rising interest in XRP.
So while legal issues and reduced interest have contributed to the decline in on-chain activity, there's room for optimism in the form of quiet accumulation driven by rekindled market confidence and increased speculative activity.
Stay tuned for more updates as the XRP saga continues!
Source: xrpscan.com and Santiment
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The sluggish XRP payment network and network growth, coupled with declining user interest, might lead some to believe that the bears are dominating the market. However, an uptick in open interest for XRP derivatives on Binance implies a possible shift in market sentiment, indicating quiet accumulation and potentially setting up conditions for a short squeeze.
