For years, many have viewed XRP through the lens of price speculation, hoping it would remain cheap long enough to accumulate massive holdings. However, David Schwartz is pushing back on that narrative, making it clear that XRP was never designed to stay cheap. Instead, its value is deeply tied to its role as a high-efficiency bridge asset for global payments, where utility drives long-term pricing. David Schwartz Challenges The Cheap XRP Narrative In a recent X post, Diana revealed that the Ripple ex-CTO David Joelkatz Schwartz has revisited one of his most widely discussed statements from 2017, that XRP “can’t be dirt cheap,” and clarified that the community has long misunderstood it. Many interpreted the comment through the lens of investor gains, but Schwartz now emphasized that this was from a payments perspective. Related Reading: XRP Analyst Shares What To Expect Once Ripple Taps This $12.5 Trillion Industry He explained that the statement was rooted in XRP’s role as a payment tool, not from a holder’s perspective. At the same time, he referred specifically to the mechanics of using XRP to move value across borders. From a payments standpoint, the dollar value of a transaction remains constant regardless of the XRP price. However, if XRP is priced too low, significantly more tokens are required to process the same transactions. This creates more friction, slippage, and inefficiency for large flows. In contrast, a higher XRP price can make large-scale payment use efficient, not because holders need a pump, but because the system works better with fewer tokens. REAL Token Powers The Next Phase Of XRP Ledger Growth Momentum around XRP continues to build as major players double down on its long-term prospects. An influencer and ambassador known as Ledger Man on X has noted that Yoshitaka Kitao, the CEO of Japan’s SBI Holdings, has reportedly expressed strong confidence in XRP’s future, even suggesting that the asset could become very expensive as adoption grows. Related Reading: XRP Ledger Linked To SWIFT In New Wave Of Backend Integration Speculation This outlook comes as SBI deepens its collaboration with Ripple, exploring new initiatives including RLUSD integration and blockchain-based bond solutions. Meanwhile, attention is turning to the expanding ecosystem around the XRP Ledger. In less than 10 days, RealFi is expected to unveil a major partnership, an announcement aimed at expanding XRPL globally. Powered by the REAL Token, the initiative is designed to introduce payment rewards across multiple industries, signaling a broader push to bring real-world utility to blockchain technology. Ledger Man emphasized that these developments highlight a growing convergence, and RealFi is rapidly gaining momentum. The conversation around tokenization is gaining urgency at the highest levels of finance. According to Amelie’s post, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink had recently argued that the industry may be underestimating how rapidly every financial asset could become tokenized. This broader vision appears to align with the developments on the XRP Ledger. On April 17th, a major global partnership is expected to launch on the XRPL, with REAL Token built on XRPL, it’s positioned to help power the ecosystem. Featured image from Vectorstock, chart from Tradingview.com
XRP may be approaching a critical turning point as technical indicators begin to signal the early stages of a potential bottoming phase. After an extended pullback and cooling momentum, analysts are pointing to growing price compression and historically oversold conditions that could precede a major move. If market structure holds and demand gradually returns, the developing slingshot setup could position XRP for a strong recovery in the coming months. Monthly Chart Signals High-Timeframe Reset, Not Collapse XRP is currently trading near the $1.35 level, a price zone that many market participants interpret as a sign of weakness. However, crypto analyst Diana suggests the situation may not be as bearish as it appears. According to her, the monthly chart shows what looks more like a high-timeframe reset following a major rally rather than a market collapse. Related Reading: XRP Price Sets Stage for Comeback — Recovery Wave Incoming? From a broader perspective, the overall trend structure still appears constructive. The $1.30–$1.35 region is acting as a key support zone where price has begun to stabilize. Although momentum has cooled, selling pressure appears to be gradually losing strength, and the current compression phase could eventually lead to a decisive breakout or breakdown. Diana also pointed out that many traders focus heavily on XRP’s large total supply and assume it cannot move significantly. However, the amount of XRP actively available for trading may be far tighter than widely believed. A considerable portion of the supply remains locked, stored off exchanges, or held by long-term investors who are not eager to sell, meaning that a surge in demand could push prices higher quickly. If XRP holds this support zone and reclaim higher resistance levels, the market could begin targeting a move back toward $3, with a stronger cycle extension potentially opening the door to the $5–$8.50 range. On the other hand, a decisive breakdown below this support area could signal the need for a deeper reset before any larger bullish continuation develops. XRP Weekly RSI Enters Historic Oversold Territory Crypto analyst EGRAG CRYPTO recently highlighted that XRP’s weekly RSI is now entering what could be the most oversold region in the asset’s history. According to the analyst, this zone has historically appeared near major turning points, making it an area that many traders and long-term investors are watching closely. Related Reading: Analyst Predicts 1,500% XRP Price Increase To $15 If This Is A Wave 2 These instances occurred in 2014, 2015, 2018, 2020, and 2022. Each time the indicator reached these extreme levels, the market was approaching a major macro low before eventually shifting direction. The analyst noted that entering this oversold zone does not necessarily mean the exact bottom will form immediately. Instead, it often signals that the market is moving into the bottoming phase, which resembles a final liquidity sweep, sideways accumulation before a gradual recovery begins. Thus, EGRAG explained that many experienced investors prefer accumulating during such conditions rather than perfectly timing the absolute bottom. With XRP’s weekly RSI now approaching this historically significant level once again, the key question is whether the current moment represents a risky entry point or a potential long-term accumulation opportunity. Featured image from Adobe Stock, chart from Tradingview.com
The XRP Ledger has quietly crossed a critical milestone. What began as an experimental blockchain designed to challenge the inefficiencies of cross-border payments is now maturing into full-scale financial infrastructure. With the final constraints that once limited bank participation now removed, XRPL is no longer something institutions test; it’s something they can deploy. How XRPL Addressed Compliance And Operational Gaps Ripple has removed a key barrier that previously prevented banks from settling directly on the XRP Ledger, a change that could enable billions of inflows into the Ledger. Crypto analyst Diana has revealed that for years, a recurring question has surrounded Ripple’s network of over 300 bank partnerships: If adoption was so broad, why isn’t there massive on-chain volume on XRPL? Related Reading: Is XRP Poised To Replace SWIFT As Global Payments Infrastructure? As explained by Ripple Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and board member David Schwartz (JoelKatz), the reason was not technical performance; it was compliance and counterparty certainty. Institutions were unable to guarantee who was providing liquidity or whether counterparties met regulatory requirements when settling on-chain. That constraint is now being addressed. Permissioned Domains are live on XRPL, allowing institutions to operate within compliant, access-controlled environments while still benefiting from on-chain settlement. However, a Permissioned DEX, which is scheduled to go live on February 18, will enable institution-only liquidity pools designed specifically for regulated participants. A big week is ahead for Ripple XRP, with more token utility anticipated. BSCN on the X platform reported that the week ahead could be an important one for the Ripple community, with new updates focused on expanding the real-world utility of XRP set to be introduced. RippleXDev has announced that the XRP community day will take place on February 11, featuring a series of live social media events. One of the key discussion points will be how upcoming roadmap features translate directly into XRP utility. RippleXDev indicated that the session will explore several foundational pillars designed to drive adoption, including programmability through smart extensions and contracts, zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) for privacy and stability, and compliance building blocks such as permissioned domains and the permissioned DEX. Why Extreme Conditions Often Precede Relief Rallies XRP price has entered the most oversold condition in its history. According to Skipper, analysts are stating that every time the altcoin reached comparable extremes, the price eventually reversed to the upside. Based on this historical pattern, XRP may be approaching a significant rebound, with a move back above the $2 level now back in focus. Related Reading: XRP Price Bearish Continuation Confirmed As Downside Pressure Builds At the same time, the evolution of the classic DEX is accelerating. DEX Pro would bring together the critical market data into a single, streamlined interface, bridging the gap between decentralized execution and professional-grade data analysis and giving traders the tools to make smarter, faster, and more informed decisions. Featured image from Freepik, chart from Tradingview.com
Crypto analyst Diana has predicted that the XRP price could rally to $7, representing a 450% gain for the altcoin. She alluded to technical setups that prove that the token could reach this price target this year, which would mark a new all-time high (ATH). XRP Price Eyes 450% Rally To $7 In an X post, Diana stated that the XRP price technical setup targets $7 next based on the Elliot Wave and Fibonacci levels. She noted that right now, the altcoin is sitting at a critical support zone between $1.50 and $1.55 and that this is the level buyers must defend. If this support holds, the analyst predicts that XRP can rise to between $1.88 and $2 with volume, which could lead to the chart opening up fast. Related Reading: XRP Price Crash Is Not Over If This Support Doesn’t Hold Diana also highlighted the short, medium, and long-term outlook for the XRP price even as it looks to surge to the $7 target this year. In the short term, she expects a clean breakout above $2, which could send XRP to between $2.20 and $2.70, a move that the analyst noted will finish the current local wave. For the medium-term outlook, Diana noted that the XRP price structure looks like the start of a larger wave 5 impulse from the 2025 to 2026 lows. Using Fibonacci extensions and channel projections, she stated that the major target lands in the $5 to $8 zone, with $7 lining up perfectly as the next realistic cycle high. The analyst also predicted that the XRP price could reach this target within the next four to eight months if momentum continues. She added that XRP could peak between June and October 2026 in bullish scenarios. XRP Could Soon Begin Wave 4 Move To The Upside In an X post, crypto analyst CasiTrades stated that she expects the Wave 4 relief move to begin soon for the XRP price as the altcoin has held its current support nicely. She noted that the first resistance she is watching is the .382 retrace at $1.78, which also coincides with the prior support breakdown. Related Reading: XRP Price Falls Below $1.6: You Won’t Believe What Institutions Are Doing Amid The Crash CasiTrades also noted that the Wave 2 move was very shallow, with the XRP price only retracing to .382, and that in Elliot Wave, shallow Wave 2 moves often lead to deeper Wave 4 retraces. As such, she believes that it is possible that this Wave 4 move could push higher toward $1.93 or even up to the $2.03 macro .5 retracement level. The analyst added that the XRP price needs to reclaim $2.03 and hold it as support. This would invalidate the need for another wave down toward $1.55 or lower, thereby causing Wave 5 to fail. At the time of writing, the XRP price is trading at around $1.58, down in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Peakpx, chart from Tradingview.com