XRP price hits two-week high: can whale buying force a breakout?

XRP price has touched a two-week high near $1.16 before slipping back as AI-led optimism, whale buying, and ETF inflows were met with profit-taking.

According to CoinGecko data, XRP traded around $1.13 at the time of writing, up about 2% over the past week with a market capitalisation above US$71 billion (approx. $91.6 billion). 

The token briefly touched $1.16 during the latest rally before sellers stepped in, leaving XRP trading just below that resistance after giving back part of its gains.

Bitcoin's recovery above the $65,000 level has improved sentiment across the crypto market, helping XRP extend its advance. 

At the same time, activity on the XRP Ledger has provided a separate catalyst after RippleX engineering head J. Ayo Akinyele said the network has now processed more than 1 million agentic AI transactions.

Akinyele told crypto media that developers are testing autonomous payments for services such as computing, application programming interfaces, and data access. 

He said agentic payments allow AI software to complete transactions automatically based on predefined instructions, while the XRP Ledger settles those transfers within three to five seconds at predictable transaction costs.

Looking ahead, Akinyele said he expects developer activity to accelerate further.

"I think we'll blast through 10 million and may even get to 100 million within the next couple of years."

Whale accumulation and ETF demand support XRP

Large investors have also continued to add XRP during the recent recovery, according to blockchain analytics firm Santiment.

Wallets holding between 100,000 and 100 million XRP increased their combined balances by 2.8% over the past five weeks. 

During the same period, balances in wallets holding less than 0.1 XRP declined by 5.2%.

Santiment said the contrasting wallet activity suggests whales and shark wallets accumulated tokens while the smallest holders reduced exposure. 

The analytics platform associated the buying trend with XRP's recovery toward $1.16 but noted that its data does not establish whale accumulation as the sole reason behind the price increase.

Institutional demand has also remained positive through US spot XRP exchange-traded funds. 

According to SoSoValue, the products recorded US$5.7 million (approx. $7.3 million) in net inflows on July 21, lifting cumulative net inflows to roughly US$1.5 billion (approx. $1.9 billion).

Despite those supportive developments, the rally struggled to hold above $1.16 as traders locked in profits around the recent high. 

CoinGecko's 24-hour chart showed XRP retreating to around $1.13 after the rejection, although the token continued trading above its recent breakout area instead of fully reversing the advance.

XRP price needs stronger momentum to extend gains

From a technical standpoint, XRP's daily chart shows the recovery remains intact but still faces significant resistance overhead.

XRP/USDT 1-day price chart. Source: TradingView.

The token continues trading above its 20-day exponential moving average (EMA) near $1.12, suggesting buyers have regained short-term control after weeks of weakness. 

However, the 50-day EMA around $1.15 coincides closely with the recent rejection zone, making it the first level bulls need to reclaim before attempting another move higher.

Momentum indicators have improved but remain balanced.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) has climbed to around 55, moving above its signal line while remaining below overbought territory, indicating buying momentum has strengthened without becoming excessive.

The broader trend, however, has yet to fully recover.

XRP remains below both the 100-day EMA near $1.23 and the 200-day EMA around $1.44, leaving longer-term resistance levels intact even after the latest rebound.

On the 4-hour chart, XRP rallied from roughly $1.08 to $1.15 before entering consolidation near $1.13, where momentum has started cooling.

XRP/USDT 4-hour price chart. Source: TradingView.

The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator has produced a bearish crossover with its histogram turning slightly negative, indicating the recent upward momentum has weakened after the rally. 

At the same time, On-Balance Volume (OBV) remains close to recent highs, suggesting buyers have largely held onto accumulated positions instead of exiting aggressively.

If buyers regain control and push XRP above the $1.15-$1.16 resistance zone, attention could turn toward the 100-day EMA near $1.23 as the next technical target. 

On the downside, maintaining support above the 20-day EMA around $1.12 would help preserve the current recovery, while a break below that level could expose XRP to another test of the $1.08-$1.10 area where buyers recently returned.