Bitcoin, Ethereum Hit Fear Extremes While XRP Defies Crowd

In Brief

• Bitcoin and Ethereum sentiment has plunged into extreme fear.
• XRP sentiment remains comparatively resilient.
• Such sentiment gaps often precede short-term market reversals.

Cryptocurrency market sentiment has taken a sharp turn following last week’s selloff, but not all assets are reacting the same way, with sentiment toward Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) flipping to extremely bearish, and XRP defying it.

According to data shared by blockchain and crypto industry monitoring platform Santiment in an X post on February 4, XRP continues to show a notably more optimistic outlook among traders.

This divergence is drawing attention because sentiment extremes often precede short-term reversals rather than trend continuation.

What The Sentiment Data Is Showing

Santiment’s positive-to-negative sentiment ratios indicate that retail traders have turned decisively pessimistic on Bitcoin and Ethereum after the recent downswing. Fear, disbelief, and frustration now dominate social and trading discussions around the two largest crypto assets.

XRP, however, stands apart. Despite broader market weakness, its sentiment metrics remain relatively constructive, suggesting traders are either less panicked or positioning differently compared to BTC and ETH participants.

That contrast matters because markets have historically tended to move against retail emotion, not with it.

📊 Sentiment has turned extremely bearish toward Bitcoin and Ethereum following crypto's major downswing this past week. XRP is seeing a more optimistic outlook among traders.

😱 As we know, markets move opposite to the fear & greed of retail traders. There remains a strong… pic.twitter.com/1U23pQ48D6

— Santiment (@santimentfeed) February 4, 2026

Why Extreme Fear Can Be Bullish

Santiment analysts note that when bearish sentiment becomes crowded, downside momentum often exhausts itself. Extreme fear has frequently aligned with short-term relief rallies, especially when disbelief among small traders remains high.

In this case, Bitcoin and Ethereum’s sentiment readings reflect capitulation-like conditions rather than calm trend confirmation. XRP’s relative optimism, meanwhile, may signal that some traders are already looking ahead instead of reacting emotionally to price action.

This doesn’t guarantee an immediate rally, but it does shift risk-reward dynamics.

What This Means For Traders

The key takeaway isn’t that XRP is immune to volatility, but that sentiment positioning is uneven across major assets. Bitcoin and Ethereum appear crowded on the fear side, whereas XRP shows a more balanced emotional profile.

As Santiment puts it, markets often reward moves that go against the dominant crowd narrative.

For traders and investors, this sentiment gap suggests the coming phase may be less about chasing breakdowns and more about watching for relief moves, rotations, or early trend stabilization as fear remains elevated.

Currently, XRP is changing hands at the price of $1.37, down 13.8% on the day, declining 26.8% across the week, and losing as much as 42.1% over the past month, according to the most recent chart information.