Why Ripple's XRP Outperformed the Other Top Cryptos This Week

Ripple's XRP is now outperforming its peers and could continue scaling key levels against bitcoin, the technical charts suggest.

AccessTimeIconApr 16, 2018 at 2:40 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 13, 2021 at 7:49 a.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

Ripple's XRP token has gone from the worst performing top-5 cryptocurrency to the best performer in just one week.

As of writing, the world's third-largest cryptocurrency by market value is trading at $0.6574 – up 33.66 percent week-on-week, according to CoinMarketCap.

The news come, of course, as the wider crypto markets have regained poise over the last week. But while the total market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies is up 30 percent week-on-week, XRP has outpaced even that notable recovery.

The table below shows how XRP fared compared to its peers over the last week:

XRP had a disastrous start to the year, dropping 77.77 percent in the first quarter. The token had dropped by 87.86 percent as of April 1 (no joke) – numbers that made it the worst performer in the top 5 at the time.

However, XRP had been looking very oversold, as per the daily relative strength index (RSI), and a rally was perhaps inevitable.

News flow may have also played a role in the gains, with CoinDesk reporting last week that Spain-based banking giant Santander is launching One Pay FX - a cross-border payments app developed in partnership Ripple. The news garnered lots of attention from the investor community and may have put a bid under XRP. It's worth noting, though, that the application does not use XRP token.

Looking ahead, there is widespread belief that Wall Street bigwigs like Soros and Rockefeller are about to kick start another bull run in crypto markets. Ripple, with its multiple partnerships with banks and other financial institutions, might be best suited to benefit from a resulting inflow of money into the crypto space.

The technical charts, too, indicate that XRP could continue to outperform bitcoin in the near future.

XRP/BTC daily chart

download-14-4

The above chart (prices as per Bitfinex) shows a Bollinger band (+2 and -2 standard deviations from the 20-day MA) squeeze, followed by an upside breakout on April 12.

A squeeze occurs when volatility falls to very low levels and the Bollinger bands narrow into a tight range. These periods of low volatility (range trading) are often followed by periods of high volatility (range breakout).

Note that XRP's volatility on April 9 reached the lowest levels since late November, hinting at the breakout move seen on Saturday. Furthermore, the daily RSI is biased to the bulls.

Taking all this into account, XRP may see a more gains against BTC over the next couple of weeks.

View

  • XRP/BTC is likely to test 0.00012–0.00012472 BTC (Feb. 14 high) over the next couple of weeks.
  • However, a break below 0.000074 BTC (20-day MA) would abort the bullish view.
  • A daily close (as per UTC) below 0.000069 BTC (April 3 low) would signal a bullish-to-bearish trend change and would open doors for a drop to 0.000060BTC.

XRP image via Shutterstock

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.