Despite the price of XRP Holding above the $2 mark after a brief rebound earlier this week, market sentiment has not fully recovered. On-chain data shows that short-term holders are closing their positions and exiting the market, reflecting increasing caution.
A decrease in the exposure of short-term holders of XRP
XRP The price may have briefly moved higher, but sentiment among short-term holders appears to be shifting toward a cautious state. From an on-chain perspective, these key investors are currently pulling back, reducing their positions after several weeks of unstable price action and weakening momentum.
As observed In the XRP HODL Waves chart shared by Steph Crypto, a market expert and investor, short-term holders have started reducing their exposure to the leading altcoin. This change in sentiment is present among wallet addresses that purchased the token over the past week and month.
Such a development reflects a cooling of speculative enthusiasm, with the supply held by these addresses known for their high turnover rate showing a perceptible decline. Since the altcoin continues to face sideways price action, this move strongly resembles profit-taking by the cohort in order to manage risks and reduce their losses.
Steph is Crypto pointed out that the share of the total XRP Supply held by these investors went from 5.75 to 4.9% in just 7 days. While the pullback may seem small, this change could potentially reshape sentiment around the altcoin and its price dynamics in the weeks to come.
This is because these investors are often one of the most responsive groups in the market. Once positions start moving into a profit zone, the cohort tends to sell their coins at a rapid pace. As short-term holders go on a selling spree, the focus now shifts to whether institutional actors and longer-term participations will resist pressure from sellers.
However, even if short-term players withdraw, large holders, also considered whalesare returning at a significant rate. This implies that deep-pocketed investors are showing renewed conviction in the altcoin’s long-term prospects.
According to According to Steph’s report, Crypto, whales, specifically wallet addresses holding between 1,000,000 XRP and 100,000,000 XRP, recently acquired an additional 60 million XRP in a single day. After a period of relative calm, the cohort appears to have returned to accumulation mode.
Leading the charge in Asia
Demand for XRP is increasing in the Asian region, as report from X Finance Bull Shows Altcoin Dominated Bitcoin in South Korea. Upbit data reveals that the token was the most traded asset in 2025 in the world’s most active retail market.
This goes beyond price speculation. This is a testament to the growing volume of the altcoin, liquidityand use. XRP/KRW has been ranked #1 for most of the year, with Upbit executing over $1 trillion in transactions. According to the expert, this is an important step because real markets reveal the truth and South Korea interacts with working exchanges.
Featured image from Getty Images, chart from Tradingview.com
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