Ripple (XRP) Traders Predict 20% Price Uptick in the Week Ahead

Ripple (XRP) price peaked at $0.58 on Feb 12, bringing its weekly gains to the 12% mark. However, the bears managed to mount a resistance sell-wall preventing a breakout above $0.60.  

But thanks to the strategic acquisition announced by the Ripple team, market data trends show that the majority of XRP traders remain confident of a prolonged rally. 

Can the bulls capitalize on the positive market sentiment to stage a decisive breakout above $0.65 in the week ahead?  

Traders are Placing Leveraged Bets on a Bullish Rebound 

XRP price finally joined the market rally after the Ripple team announced the acquisition of Standard Custody on Feb 13. Within 48 hours of the announcement XRP price soared 12% to a weekly top of $0.58. 

But the buying pressure in the overall crypto market cooled after Bitcoin ETFs, the major drivers of the ongoing rally, closed trading on Friday Feb 16. In effect, XRP price has since entered a 7% downswing, trading at $0.54 at press time on Feb 18. 

However, the bullish headwinds from Ripple’s recent strategic acquisition remains dominant among derivatives traders. 

Santiment’s funding rate data monitors changes in fees that perpetual futures traders pay to opposing positions holders, to keep their contracts open. 

The chart below shows that the XRP funding rate has been on a steady rise since Feb 13. In specific terms, it has increased from $0.011% on Feb 12 to $0.018% on Feb 18. 

Typically, elevated values of positive funding rates means that XRP LONG position holders are paying increased fees to SHORT traders to keep their positions open. 

This market alignment occurs when LONG traders are increasingly confident that spot prices will rise in the short term, and yield outsized profits. 

Hence, with futures traders paying high fees during a price pullback as observed above, it signals intention to defend their positions and hold out for a rebound in the short-term rather than exit. 

If this bullish scenario plays out, XRP price could be on the verge of a significant breakout in the week ahead. 

XRP Price Forecast: $0.65 Target in Focus

Drawing inferences from the recent XRP price trend and elevated funding rate trend observed above, the coming week could yield a 20% price upswing if the overall crypto market sentiment remains bullish. 

The Parabolic Stop and Reverse (SAR) indicator further confirms this stance. When it points below an asset’s current price, it confirms that there’s a dominant bullish sentiment within the markets. 

As seen below, XRP price is currently trading at $0.55, while the Parabolic SAR dots point at $0.51. This confirms that despite the 7% pull back recorded between Feb 15 and Feb 18, the bulls are still largely in control. 

If the crypto market swings bullish when ETFs resume trading on Monday, the $0.55 support could serve as a springboard for a larger 20% rebound toward $0.65 in the week ahead. 

On the flip side, if the market flips bearish, XRP bears could negate this bullish prediction by forcing a downswing below $0.50. 

But as depicted above by the parabolic SAR dots, the bulls could mount a major support buy-wall around the $0.51 area.