XRP Ledger Activity Hits 2025 Highs Amid Price Dips, Signaling Potential Market Shift

As 2026 commences, the XRP Ledger (XRPL) is witnessing a remarkable surge in network engagement and utility, standing in stark contrast to the broader cryptocurrency market's volatility. By February 3, 2026, the seven-day moving average (SMA) for the ledger's velocity climbed to 0.013, a level not seen since the peak periods of January 2025. This specific metric, which tracks how frequently tokens circulate within the ecosystem, highlights a significant uptick in asset movement and user involvement, pointing toward robust economic health across trading, payment processing, and decentralized finance applications.

This spike in on-chain activity is particularly noteworthy because it coincides with a downward trend in XRP’s market value, which hovered around $1.57 during these periods of peak velocity. Market analysts often describe this divergence between high network throughput and declining prices as a "high friction event." Historically, such scenarios suggest that the market is approaching a major redistribution phase or a critical pivot point. Simultaneously, large-scale investors, commonly referred to as "whales," are showing renewed confidence. Since January 1, 2026, the network has seen the addition of 42 new "millionaire" addresses—those holding at least 1 million XRP—effectively reversing the selling trend that characterized the final quarter of 2025.

Further evidence of increased network utilization is found in the decentralized exchange (DEX) metrics of the XRPL. Trading volume on the DEX reached its highest point in over a year, with the 14-day SMA surpassing 1.014 million transactions, marking a 13-month record. This sustained growth in raw volume underscores the successful implementation of the XRPL’s auto-bridging mechanism, which utilizes XRP as a bridge asset to facilitate synthetic order books. Data from Artemis reinforces this trend, showing that daily base transactions consistently exceeded two million, with peaks reaching approximately 2.5 million.

The broader evolution of the XRPL ecosystem provides essential context for these figures. The accumulation by whale accounts is occurring alongside Ripple’s ongoing institutional efforts, including the conditional approval granted by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in late 2025. Although XRP traded within a range of $1.46 to $1.60 throughout January 2026, and even touched lows of $1.43 or $1.29 by February 5, 2026, institutional confidence remains bolstered by regulatory milestones. Analysts observe that this pattern—where retail investors offload assets (with 145 million tokens exiting retail wallets in January) while institutional players accumulate—has historically served as a precursor to significant market rallies.

The current state of XRPL activity, particularly the rise in velocity, suggests a maturing infrastructure that supports a bullish long-term outlook despite immediate price corrections. Software engineer Vincent Van Code previously modeled that under full network utilization—reaching 3400 transactions per second—the Load Factor scaling mechanism could exert a structural influence on the total XRP supply. Consequently, the high circulation of XRP amid price pressure creates a complex narrative where fundamental utility remains strong. Investors are now closely monitoring how the price reacts at critical support levels, specifically the demand zone near $1.45.

Ultimately, the decoupling of network utility from market price presents a unique window into the asset's underlying strength. While retail sentiment may be swayed by short-term fluctuations, the underlying data regarding transaction volumes and whale accumulation suggests a resilient ecosystem. As the XRPL continues to integrate more deeply with institutional frameworks, the gap between its technical performance and market valuation may soon narrow, making the current "high friction" period a vital chapter in its 2026 trajectory.