Despite the price of XRP holding above the $2 mark following a brief rebound earlier this week, sentiment across the market has not fully recovered. On-chain data shows that short-term holders are closing their positions and exiting the market, which reflects growing caution.
A Dip In XRP Short-Term Holder Exposure
XRP may have gained brief upward traction, but short-term holders’ sentiment appears to be moving into a cautious state. From an on- chain standpoint, these key investors are currently stepping back, trimming their positions after several weeks of choppy price action and weakening momentum.
As observed in the XRP HODL Waves chart shared by Steph is Crypto, a market expert and investor, short-term holders have begun to reduce their exposure in the leading altcoin. This shift in sentiment is present among wallet addresses that purchased the token over the past week and month.
Such a development points to a cooling of speculative zeal, with supply held by these addresses known for their high turnover rate showing a discernible decline. Given the altcoin continues to face sideways price action, this shift strongly resembles profit-taking from the cohort in order to manage risk and cut their losses.
Steph is Crypto highlighted that the share of the total XRP supply held by these investors has fallen from 5.75 to 4.9% in just 7 days. While the pullback may seem small, the shift has the potential to reshape sentiment around the altcoin and its price dynamics in the upcoming weeks.
This is due to the fact that these investors are often one of the most reactive groups in the market. Once positions start to move into profit territory, the cohort tends to sell off their coins at a swift rate. With short-term holders going on a selling spree, the focus now is on whether institutional players and longer-term holdings will withstand the sell-side pressure.
However, while short-term players are exiting, large holders, also regarded as whales, are stepping back in at a significant rate. This implies that deep-pocket investors are exhibiting renewed conviction in the altcoin’s long-term prospects.
According to the report from Steph is Crypto, whales, particularly 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 quiet, the cohort seems to have moved back into accumulation mode.
Leading The Charge In Asia
Demand for XRP is growing in the Asian region, as a report from X Finance Bull shows that the altcoin dominated Bitcoin in South Korea. Data from Upbit reveals that the token was the most traded asset of 2025 across the most active retail market on Earth.
This is beyond price speculation. It is a testament to the altcoin’s increasing volume, liquidity, and usage. The XRP/KRW was ranked in the top spot most of the year, with Upbit executing over $1 trillion in trades. According to the expert, this is an important landmark because real markets reveal truth, and South Korea interacts with trades that work.
