XRP price falls below $2, with $721 million in profit-taking impacting the market

A rather obvious signal in the cryptocurrency space is that when old coins decide to exit the market, it means it's time for them to leave. This isn't about "selling quickly after a 20% gain," but rather coins that have existed for several years.

Glassnode researcher CryptoVizArt pointed out this situation on December 11, after discovering an XRP wallet (with a cost of about $0.40) that made a profit of over $721.5 million.

A single wallet itself cannot "disrupt" the market. But timing is crucial: this is not just profit-taking, but rather a sign of weakness appearing right as XRP's price approached the key $2.0 (UTC+8) level.

CryptoVizArt wrote on X: "On December 11, an XRP wallet address registered 5-7 years ago (with a cost price of $0.4) realized a profit of over $721.5 million! Such a massive profit-taking event is rare, especially when the price is weak and the key level of $2.0 (UTC+8) is being approached."

Realized profits of XRP by age | Source: X @CryptoVizArt

What This Means for XRP Price

The $2 (UTC+8) threshold is important for many reasons—it's a round number, a notable feature on the chart, a psychological barrier—but more importantly, the market has been unusually sensitive to this level recently. Since early December last year, the support area between $2 (UTC+8) and $1.90 (UTC+8) has been tested multiple times. XRP bulls have always managed to close the weekly chart above this region.

So, what does this $721 million cash-out mean? It reminds us: oversupply is not just theoretical. Taking profits after holding funds for 5-7 years can certainly be interpreted as "risk reduction." But from a trading perspective, it also means the market must absorb these profits when the price is already tilted. If buying is strong, the market may not care; if buying is weak, then a loss at $2 (UTC+8) could become a trap.
Now, "streamlining" has become a common trend in the cryptocurrency space, not just for XRP.

CryptoVizArt's view on December 13 was broader. He believes that the pressure from bitcoin's $80,000 to $90,000 (UTC+8) consolidation range is "comparable to late January 2022." He wrote on X: "The current pressure from the $80,000 to $90,000 (UTC+8) consolidation range is comparable to late January 2022, and..." relative unrealized losses are close to 10% of the market cap. This puts the market in a state of limited liquidity and high sensitivity to macro shocks, but still below the levels usually associated with a full-blown bear market collapse.

This context is important because altcoin trading does not occur in isolation. When the entire market is highly volatile, sell-offs at key levels have a greater impact. This is not because every XRP holder suddenly panics, but because market makers and proprietary traders often take risks simultaneously, spreads widen, market depth thins, and "one-off" capital flows have a greater impact on prices.

However, there are pros and cons to everything. A sharp price drop can also be a sign that the market is resolving issues—old supply exits, new demand flows in, and this transition ultimately consolidates the price base. The key is whether the $2 (UTC+8) level can hold during this transition.

As of press time, XRP was trading at $1.89 (UTC+8), which could make Sunday's weekly close another extremely important event.

XRP breaks below key support area, weekly chart | Source: XRPUSDT on TradingView.com