Data tracked by the Whale Alert system indicated that Ripple has unlocked one billion XRP coins. Why did this take place and where did they go? Let’s check!
Escrow releases more XRP
February 1 turned out to be a typical first day for the Ripple company, every month thereafter. This is when more XRP coins are automatically released from the Escrow wallet. The rule worked well this time, too. Whale Alert, a system that focuses on tracking large cryptocurrency transactions, recorded transfers around XRP as early as midnight. Three independent transfers were thus made, which released 300 million, 200 million and finally 500 million XRP, respectively. The total value of the coins transferred at that point was nearly $405.4 million.
All movements from the Escrow wallet went to two unknown wallets. Most likely, both belong to Ripple.
In recent months, the Silicon Valley company has accustomed us to seeing a large portion of unblocked coins returned back to the blocked account. The deposit was credited with amounts as high as 80% of the total funds released. The remainder, in turn, was used to meet the company’s daily expenses and operations.
What’s next for the released XRP?
In the first dozen hours or so after the release of the coins, there were no specific transactions around the portfolios into which the funds flowed. They were not even transferred to entities using the Ripple On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) solution. Movements between the portfolios and the exchanges were also not recorded. This could mean that the company has enough resources to cover its current expenses, and the newly freed funds can wait for the XRP price to rise.
Meanwhile, exactly 17 hours later, Whale Alert traced two more transactions. They indicate an inflow of 600 million XRP into the Escrow portfolio.
Looking at the details of these transactions, one can see that they come from exactly those wallets that were infused the same day. Thus, the tradition of recent months of re-blocking released assets in the Escrow wallet has been upheld.
XRP is playing out a similar pattern that occurred with BTC
Just before the January increases began, Bitcoin managed to figure out an Adam & Eve pattern. This is a way of marking a double bottom. A very similar shape has currently taken the chart of XRP.
Here we are currently observing a struggle to break through a wide resistance zone, located between $0.41 and $0.45. Its overcoming may open the way for XRP to reach much higher valuations.
