Ripple Unlocks Half A Billion XRP Tokens From Escrow, Stoking Price Drop Fears

Blockchain payments startup Ripple has sent ripples across the crypto market after withdrawing a substantial sum from its escrow accounts.

Ripple unlocked 500 million XRP from escrow, triggering debates over its potential impact on the coin’s price. 

The latest escrow unlock comes amid a market-wide crypto downturn.

500 Million XRP Released From Escrow

According to data from crypto tracking platform Whale Alert on May 1, Ripple released $248,531,377 XRP, worth approximately $248,531,377 earlier today.

500,000,000 #XRP (248,531,377 USD) unlocked from escrow at unknown wallethttps://t.co/MvhJyVMjcC

— Whale Alert (@whale_alert) May 1, 2024

This XRP release today is not a whimsical act, but rather part of Ripple’s long-standing strategy aimed at boosting market liquidity and ensuring seamless cross-border transactions. Ripple scheduled the unlocks to occur on the first day of each month for 55 months. 

Typically, Ripple releases a billion XRP every month. Speculation abounds, however, as to why the company released half of that amount this month. Could it symbolize an unforeseen event, or is Ripple strategically pacing its unlocks? Nevertheless, based on Ripple’s previous moves, it’s reasonable to expect the release of the second tranche of XRP from the firm’s inventory later this month. Moreover, Ripple always ensures that all unused XRP tokens are returned to the escrow system.

XRP Price Today

The timing of Ripple’s latest customary unlock coincides with a turbulent period in the crypto market. Bitcoin (BTC) crashed to as low as $56,637 in the hours leading up to the Federal Reserve meeting. The BTC price is hovering around $58,249 at press time, having dropped by 3% over the past 24 hours. 

XRP has shown remarkable resilience in its pricing today, despite ongoing legal hurdles. The seventh-largest crypto is trading for $0.5164 at press time with a 3.9% daily gain. Data from CoinGecko shows that XRP has lost 3.4% over the past 7 days, while Bitcoin has shed 9.2% of its value during the same timeframe. If the bulls can fiercely defend the $0.50 support level, more gains could be expected soon. But the bulls will regain full control on a break and close above $0.58.