XRP is trading within a typical bearish wedge pattern on the weekly chart, suggesting a bullish breakout could push prices towards $2.88 in the coming sessions.
This pattern is characterized by the convergence of bearish trend lines, usually preceding bullish reversals. XRP has adhered to the upper and lower limits of this pattern since peaking near USD$3.20 earlier this year. The consolidation situation appears to be approaching its peak, increasing the likelihood of an imminent breakout.
XRP’s consolidation above its 50-week EMA, which is currently close to USD$1.62, supports the bullish outlook. This moving average acts as a dynamic support, while it’s 200-week EMA (about USD$0.89) remains well below it, reinforcing the long-term uptrend.
The momentum is gradually improving, with the weekly RSI remaining above 50. This reading, ranging from neutral to optimistic, suggests that buyers retain control without the asset being overbought.
If XRP closes with a strong trading volume above the upper border of the wedge, the technical target of the pattern is near $2.88, measured by adding the maximum height of the wedge to the breakout point. Moving towards this level will confirm the broader uptrend of XRP.
Failure to break this level may delay the move, but the overall structure favors the bulls as long as the price remains above the fundamental support level at $1.80.
XRP sentiment fell as outflows dominated in April.
Coin glass data showed that XRP-linked investment products saw huge outflows this month, with more than $300 million exiting asset funds in April.
Ripple v. SEC Case Continues to Influence Currency Market
The conclusion of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) case against Ripple remains decisive for Ripple’s price trends. Investors should wait for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) vote to withdraw its appeal against Judge Annalisa Torres’ ruling on software sales of Ripple. Optimism increased over the weekend after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requested) and Ripple jointly suspend the appeal proceedings. Notably, the parties submitted their file to the court before the April 16 deadline for Ripple to file an appeal brief.
While the cryptocurrency market awaits clarification on the SEC’s appeal, the Office of the Inspector General’s (OIG) investigation into the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s potential cryptocurrency conflict of interest has come under scrutiny.
On April 11, the US government watchdog (Empower Oversight) obtained the results of the Office of the Inspector General, after referring the evidence in May 2022. However, the results disappointed the legal community, which had hoped to deepen the investigation into the proceedings under the leadership of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) made at least six attempts to suppress documents from Hinman’s speech related to the Ripple case. However, Judge Torres ordered their release.
The documents revealed that Bill Hinman maintained contact with his former law firm, Simpson Thacher, despite warnings from the SEC’s ethics department. Simpson Thacher is affiliated with a group promoting the Ethereum Enterprise project.
Empower Oversight alleged that Hinman received millions of dollars from his former employer while working at the SEC. Hinman returned to Simpson Thacher after leaving the SEC. His pro-Ethereum speech coincided with Ethereum surpassing XRP in market capitalization, while XRP came under regulatory scrutiny.
XRP stands out amid outflows in the cryptocurrency market
The decline in XRP coincided with the decline in the price of Bitcoin, affected by tariff developments. On April 13, President Trump denied recent reports of tariff exemptions, calling them “fake news,” and warned against imposing new tariffs targeting semiconductors and electronics.
Bitcoin’s gains on Saturday came in response to reports that the U.S. government was exempt smartphones, routers and laptops from-for-tat tariffs.
Despite fresh warnings about tariffs, U.S. futures rose in early trading on Monday, with Nasdaq 100 futures up 197 points. Renewed risk appetite boosted the price of Bitcoin, which rose 0.84% to $84,479.
While the digital asset investment sector continued to lose capital for the third week in a row, recording $795 million in outflows, bringing its monthly figure to date to nearly $1 billion, some assets managed to overcome this trend – XRP was at the top of this short list, attracting $3.4 million in inflows, while almost all other assets went in the opposite direction.
This type of discrepancy usually doesn’t show up clearly, especially in a week like this when negative emotions are almost everywhere.
Flows across countries, between providers, and in almost all major assets except for a few smaller altcoins – but XRP not only avoided the hit, but topped all non-Bitcoin-related tokens in net inflows, according to Coin Shares..
In a week that saw the U.S. withdraw $763 million from cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds alone, this is notable.
The general landscape of the market has not changed much. Since early February, when outflows rose significantly, the sector has seen $7.2 billion withdrawn, erasing almost all net gains made earlier in the year, bringing total year-to-date inflows to just $165 million.
