XRP transactions on exchanges recorded an uptick on Monday, coming amid elevated fear levels in the market.

Traders show a general lack of conviction as altcoins follow Bitcoin’s lead. Despite the bearish sentiment, data indicates heightened interest in Ripple.

XRP Transactions on Exchanges Increase

Data platform Blockchair reported a series of XRP transactions on exchanges on Monday. In one transaction, over 10 million XRP tokens worth at least $4.2 million moved from Binance to an unknown wallet.

In another transaction, more than 3.6 million XRP tokens worth at least $1.45 million moved from Bitstamp to Binance.

Read more: How To Buy XRP and Everything You Need To Know

When traders move their assets to a wallet, it suggests an intention to HODL. On the other hand, moving crypto between centralized exchanges suggests plans to explore different trading features, lower fees, or a wider variety of trading pairs. It may also be a strategic move to arbitrage between exchanges, as traders exploit price differences to make a profit.

Increased XRP trading activity coincides with changing social sentiment. According to CFGI.io, sentiment has improved from fear to neutral. This indicates that the market is currently neither overly optimistic nor excessively pessimistic.

Along with it, the investment suggestion remains to hold on amid “very positive” volatility, suggesting the need for caution. Nevertheless, Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer suggests the market needs to focus on XRP’s utility rather than its investment potential.

“Still costs $1 to buy enough XRP to make a $1 payment,” Schwartz noted.

The expression came as community members showed concern over how the ongoing market crash would impact the Ripple token. XRP has been subdued below the $0.6 price threshold over the past several months. 

Focus on the Primary Function of Ripple, David Schwartz Says

Ripple CTO suggests that XRP holders can take advantage of the current price to purchase more tokens. He believes this highlights XRP’s primary function as a medium of exchange, facilitating fast and cost-effective cross-border transactions despite the bearish market.

However, some say Schwartz is deviating from his 2017 comment and is trying to manipulate the narrative.

“It can’t be dirt cheap. That does not make any sense. If XRP costs $1, they would need a million XRP, which would cost $1 million. If XRP costs a million dollars, they would need one XRP, which would, again, cost $1 million. Except that, higher prices make payments cheaper. Right now, you can buy a million-dollar house with bitcoins. When bitcoins were $300, it would move the market too much and be too expensive to be practical. So higher prices make payments cheaper,” the Ripple executive said in X post.

Read more: Ripple (XRP) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

Nevertheless, Schwartz shot down the allegation that he was deviating and manipulating, reiterating his stance on XRP’s main purpose. This emphasis suggests the Ripple network’s commitment to promoting XRP for its utility in cross-border payments, not as an investment tool.

During Token2049 in Singapore, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse also said the network is now more focused on what utility they are building than on speculative trading.

“Bitcoin ETF volumes have been soaring, we’re due for a halving, and the broader crypto market is following BTC’s lead. As someone who has experienced multiple cycles of ‘crypto is back,’ this bullishness must go hand in hand with real-world utility. That’s the real march of progress,” Garlinghouse explained.

A crypto whale wallet – 0x742, likely liquidated a substantial Ethereum position valued at approximately $21.43 million. This investor deposited 7,240 Ethereum (ETH) into the Kraken crypto exchange at $2,960 per ETH.

The move is intriguing, especially given the proximity to the anticipated launch of Ethereum-based ETFs.

Ethereum Attempts a Price Recovery

According to Spot On Chain, in December 2022, 0x742 had withdrawn 8,240 ETH from Kraken at a much lower price of $1,189. This strategic hold resulted in a profit of roughly $12.83 million, marking a 149% gain over eighteen months.

Apart from the deposit of 7,240 ETH to Kraken, the crypto whale transferred an additional 1,000 ETH to an unidentified wallet.

Read more: Ethereum ETF Explained: What It Is and How It Works

This divestment coincides with a surge of optimism about the pending approval and trading of Ethereum-based ETFs in the US. Analysts such as James Seyffart and Eric Balchunas from Bloomberg Intelligence suggest these ETFs might start trading as soon as next week.

Additionally, Nate Geraci, president of the ETF Store, suggested that ETFs could commence trading within the next two weeks, with a target around July 15. The prediction comes as Bitwise updated its S-1 filing last week.

Geraci explained his reasoning behind the July 15 prediction.

“Most issuers (I believe all but Bitwise) still have to submit amendments on Monday. The final S-1 will then be submitted after that, which needs to happen by Wednesday as I assume issuers don’t want a Friday launch. I think this is unlikely, so I move the timeline to the July 15,” Geraci said.

Notably, crypto whales like 0x742 decided to exit positions ahead of these developments. Investors typically deposit assets into centralized exchanges when they plan to sell and withdraw them to private wallets for long-term holdings.

Therefore, this move might indicate skepticism about Ethereum’s near-term market prospects despite the positive outlook for ETFs. It might also suggest that the crypto whale panic sold after Ethereum hit a low of $2,800 last week.

Ethereum’s price action has been volatile recently, with a notable dip of about 23% from its peak after preliminary ETF approval news. However, it has shown signs of recovery, forming a double bottom pattern, which suggests potential upward movement.

Read more: Ethereum (ETH) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

If Ethereum can break through the resistance at $3,080, it could climb to $3,350. Conversely, failing to break this resistance might lead to price consolidation in the range of $2,876 to $3,080.

Dogecoin’s (DOGE) steady price decline in the past few weeks has negatively impacted activity in its derivatives market. 

At $2.51 billion as of the writing, the meme coin’s total open interest has cratered to its lowest level since the beginning of the year. 

Dogecoin Derivatives Traders Say Their Goodbyes

An asset’s open interest measures the total number of outstanding options or futures contracts that have not been settled or closed.

When it increases, it indicates that new contracts are being created, suggesting growing interest or activity in the market. Conversely, when open interest decreases, it means that existing contracts are being closed without new ones being opened, which can indicate a decline in market activity or interest.

As of this writing, DOGE’s open interest is $2.51 billion. It initiated its downtrend on June 8 and has since declined by 80%. For context, the meme coin’s open interest was above $10 billion a month ago. 

Read More: Dogecoin (DOGE) vs Shiba Inu (SHIB): What’s the Difference?

The decline in its derivatives market activity is due to the steady dip in its value during the period under review. The ninth-ranked cryptocurrency asset by market capitalization trades at $0.10 at press time. Its price has fallen by 30% in the last month.

This unabated decline in DOGE’s value even prompted many of its futures traders to demand short positions on July 6. This is based on the readings from the coin’s funding rate, which was negative (-0.026%) on that day.

Funding rates are used in perpetual futures contracts to ensure that the contract price stays close to the spot price. 

When an asset’s funding rate is negative, more traders are holding short positions. This means more traders anticipate the asset’s price will decline than those expecting it to rise and sell at a higher price. 

DOGE Price Prediction: A Rebound On the Horizon?

Despite the decline in DOGE’s value, its Chaikin Money Flow (CMF) has maintained an uptrend. As of this writing, DOGE’s CMF is above the zero line at 0.03 and currently trends upward. 

This indicator measures the flow of money into and out of an asset. When an asset’s price declines while its CMF climbs, it indicates a bullish divergence between price and money flow. 

It suggests that despite the falling price, there is significant buying volume. This divergence implies that buyers are stepping in and accumulating the asset at lower prices, which may weaken the selling pressure.

If buying activity continues to gain momentum, DOGE’s price may rise to $0.11.

Read More: Dogecoin (DOGE) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

However, if the divergence is a false signal and selling pressure remains high, DOGE’s price may plummet to $0.08.