Recent market dynamics have seen the XRP price surging past the psychological $1 mark for the first time since 2021. This marked a significant milestone for the XRP price, which has spent the majority of the last three years trading below $0.6. 

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The rally, driven by key market dynamics and specific holder activity, highlights the role of strategic accumulation by large stakeholders. Particularly, on-chain data shows an intriguing trend among whales, sharks, and retail wallets.

XRP Price Breakout To $1.26: Whale And Shark Accumulation Driving Surge

The XRP price climbed to $1.26 on Binance, reaching a level not seen since November 11, 2021. This three-year high comes during a broader cryptocurrency market rally, but the XRP price growth is tied to the strategic moves of its key stakeholders and an anticipated change in leadership of the US SEC. 

According to on-chain analytics platfrom Santiment, large XRP holders, specifically wallets holding between 1 million and 100 million tokens, have been instrumental in this breakout. Notably, this holder cohort consists of the sharks and whales categories. That is, semi-large and large XRP holders. 

XRP whale and shark wallets have collectively accumulated 453.3 million XRP tokens in the past week alone, pushing their total holdings to about 18% of the total supply of XRP. At the current average XRP price, this accumulation is worth around $526.3 million. The accumulation by whale and shark wallets is no coincidence. As Santiment noted, history shows that large-scale acquisitions by market participants tend to signal bullish sentiment and often precede sustained price increases. 

Interestingly, while whales and sharks have been accumulating XRP, retail traders have been offloading their holdings. Santiment reported that wallets with less than 1 million XRP have collectively sold 75.7 million tokens over the past week, worth approximately $87.9 million. However, most of these offloadings have been scooped up by shark and whale wallets to essentially counter any negative effects of the dumps.

Image from X: Santiment

What’s Next For XRP?

The massive XRP price surge has seen the cryptocurrency displacing Dogecoin in market cap rankings to regain its position as the sixth-largest asset. The XRP price is up by about 11% in the past 24 hours, while the Dogecoin price has declined by about 7%.

At the time of writing, XRP has retraced a bit from this three-year high of $1.26 and is currently trading at $1.06. Nevertheless, there is still a bullish sentiment surrounding XRP, especially if the sharks and whales can continue to hold above the $1 mark. This, in turn, is set to lead to a  simultaneous retail FUD that will fuel more growth.

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According to crypto analyst Egrag Crypto, the next bullish step is for the XRP price to close above $1.10 on the current weekly candlestick.

Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView

Billionaire Elon Musk and political figure Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have thrown their support behind Bitcoin advocate Howard Lutnick in the heated debate over who should become the next Treasury Secretary under President-elect Donald Trump.

Lutnick, CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, is competing with Scott Bessent, founder of Key Square Group, for the role. Both contenders are recognized for their pro-crypto stances, making the decision pivotal for the U.S. financial landscape.

Pro-crypto Candidates Compete for Treasury Role in Trump Administration

On November 16, Kennedy Jr., recently nominated as Secretary of Health and Human Services, endorsed Lutnick for Treasury Secretary. He praised Lutnick’s pro-crypto approach, emphasizing its potential to address pressing economic challenges like inflation, the weakening dollar, and mounting national debt.

“Bitcoin is the currency of freedom , a hedge against inflation for middle class Americans,a remedy against the dollar’s downgrade from the world’s reserve currency, and the offramp from a ruinous national debt. Bitcoin will have no stronger advocate than Howard Lutnik,” Kennedy stated.

Musk also voiced support for Lutnick. In his statement, Musk suggested that Lutnick could drive meaningful change, contrasting him with Bessent, whom he described as a “business-as-usual” candidate. According to him, there is a need for bold action to address America’s economic challenges, adding that a shake-up was necessary to avoid further decline.

“Bessent is a business-as-usual choice, whereas Lutnick will actually enact change. Business-as-usual is driving America bankrupt, so we need change one way or another,” Musk chimed.

Lutnick’s leadership experience, particularly his role in rebuilding Cantor Fitzgerald, has earned him respect in the financial world. His open support for cryptocurrencies and efforts to integrate them into traditional finance, such as Cantor’s role as custodian for Tether’s assets, demonstrate his forward-thinking approach.

On the other hand, recent statements attributed to Bessent affirm his belief in crypto’s potential. This aligns with Trump’s vision of making the US the global leader in blockchain innovation. One statement reportedly attributed to him reads:

“I think everything is on the table with Bitcoin. One of the most exciting things about Bitcoin is that it brings in young people and those who have not participated in markets before. Cultivating a market culture in the US, where people believe in a system that works for them, is the centerpiece of capitalism.”

Meanwhile, the debate has extended to decentralized prediction markets, where users are divided. On Polymarket, both candidates have a 47% chance of being picked.

Observers noted that this appointment would likely set the tone for Trump’s administration, which has already demonstrated a strong pro-crypto stance by appointing several blockchain advocates to key positions. However, whether Lutnick or Bessent takes the role, the decision will have far-reaching implications for the country’s economic direction.

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