XRP achieved a historic daily close above $1.544 on September 22nd, marking the first breakout above this critical level since early February. According to AMBCrypto analysis, this represents the fourth attempt by bulls to force such a breakout throughout 2026, with previous attempts on January 28th, February 1st, and August 22nd all failing. The token's recovery from $1.27 earlier this month to current levels around $1.56 has been accompanied by unprecedented exchange activity, with average daily XRP inflows into Binance reaching 21.7 million tokens, representing a striking 663% spike above the quarterly baseline. The surge concentrated in just three sessions: 91.2 million XRP on September 11th, 44.5 million XRP on September 16th, and 41.7 million XRP on September 17th, coinciding with the failed CLARITY Act vote and the Federal Reserve's first rate hike since 2023.
Whale activity has intensified significantly with large holders accumulating approximately $2.2 billion worth of XRP in just four days, as reported by popular crypto analyst Ali Martinez. Santiment data confirmed these findings, showing 1,917 $100k+ whale transactions when XRP broke above the $1.60 mark. Network growth also spiked dramatically to 3,647 new XRP wallets, indicating active whale participation in the current rally. Open Interest witnessed a growth spurt, reaching $600 million on Binance, the highest level since January, with the 180-day moving average of OI at $445 million underlining the speculative growth and bullish confidence in the altcoin. However, AMBCrypto warns that excess leverage can lead to high volatility and swift corrections, despite the strong bullish sentiment.
XRP ETFs attracted approximately $38 million in two trading sessions, with Bitwise leading the latest inflows at $14.89 million on September 24th. According to SoSoValue data, this followed $23.17 million in the previous session, bringing the cumulative two-day total to just over $38 million. Bitwise led the daily inflows with $9.91 million, while Franklin Templeton followed with $4.98 million, with no net movement observed from other listed products. The five funds now hold a combined $1.70 billion in assets, with their cumulative net inflows reaching $1.76 billion. Bitwise's XRP holdings have also grown, with the fund holding 401.42 million tokens on September 23rd, up by 14.18 million from two days earlier, with its XRP worth about $613.89 million.
XRP traded near the $1.56 price level at the time of writing, having gained about 2% during the session, recovering from its recent dip and remaining above the levels that have supported its rebound. The next challenge sits around the $1.60 price level, which has approached on different occasions but sellers have not allowed it to hold above that level. A convincing move through the $1.60–$1.65 price region would show that buyers remain in control and could give XRP room to extend its recovery. For now, the $1.50 price level is the nearest level to watch if the price drops, with holding above it helping preserve short-term momentum. If it falls below the $1.50 level, it would make the recovery less convincing and could bring the price back towards the $1.43 price area. The $1.544 level represents a notable achievement from the bulls that can spark a sustained uptrend, though network metrics remain mixed with the network value to transactions ratio falling 32.1% and transaction counts declining 16.4%.
