XRP Whales Just Nuked 460M Tokens

Whale behavior around XRP has flipped sharply this week, and the timing couldn’t be worse for a market already fighting heavy downside pressure. New on-chain data shows that large holders have offloaded or redistributed 460 million XRP in just four days.

The scale of the move raises a critical question: Is this a temporary reshuffling or the early signal of deeper market stress? Investors are watching closely because whale capitulation often precedes outsized volatility.

What Data Reveals About XRP Whale Selloff

The alert comes from renowned cryptocurrency trading analyst Ali Martinez, who flagged that wallets holding 1M-10M XRP saw a substantial decline over a 96-hour window in an X post on November 27.

This cohort typically acts as early movers before broader retail reactions, making their behavior a high-signal dataset during market inflection points.

Santiment’s supply data shows these wallets collectively shed around 460 million tokens, aligning with a period of visible price weakness. The chart reveals a near-synchronized drop in both price and whale holdings, tightening the link between distribution and downward momentum.

What’s less clear is where the tokens ended up. Some appear to have moved to exchanges, a classic precursor to selling pressure, while others may have been redistributed into smaller wallets in a pattern that sometimes indicates strategic repositioning rather than outright liquidation.

The timing is notable. XRP has been trending downward for weeks, and this cluster of whale activity emerged right as the price revisited multi-month support levels. In previous cycles, similar declines in mid-tier whale holdings have foreshadowed sharp volatility spikes.

Why This Matters for XRP’s Outlook

Currently, XRP is trading at $2.22, which indicates an increase of 1.5% on the day, a 17.42% gain across the week, and an accumulated loss of 16.04% over the past month, according to the most recent pricing chart information.

Whales offloading assets at scale can reshape liquidity conditions within days, especially in a market already battling low momentum. If even part of the 460M XRP has been sent to exchanges, the sell-side pressure could continue to weigh on price through the week.

But there’s a second interpretation worth considering. A redistribution of supply into smaller wallets can sometimes reflect long-term accumulation disguised through address fragmentation, a strategy used in past cycles by funds trying to avoid signaling their intent.

Until more data points emerge, the risk skew remains tilted toward volatility. Traders should pay attention to whether exchange inflows continue rising, which would be the clearest confirmation that this is a genuine unwind rather than strategic wallet management.

More Must-Reads:

• Bhutan Quietly Stakes $971K in Ethereum
• Investor Calls Solana Crash to $26 as Ethereum Fees Crash 
• Bitcoin Tests $93K While Charts Tell A Dark Story