XRP Investors Face Biggest Paper Losses Since 2020 – Bearish Momentum Builds

• XRP’s 30-day Market Value to Realized Value ratio fell to its lowest level since December 2020 on Tuesday, leaving average short-term traders down roughly 55%, according to Santiment data.
• Santiment said the deeply negative reading reflected heavy selloffs and growing fear among traders after months of XRP price weakness.
• Some crypto analysts turned bullish ahead of late-May macro and liquidity events, citing potential catalysts for XRP and the broader crypto market.

XRP traders are enduring their deepest unrealized losses in nearly five years as the token’s prolonged decline continues to batter market sentiment. Data from blockchain analytics platform Santiment showed XRP’s 30-day Market Value to Realized Value (MVRV) ratio dropped to its lowest level since December 2020 on Tuesday, leaving the average short-term trader down roughly 55% on paper. 

Santiment Flags ‘Extreme Opportunity Zone’

The blockchain analytics platform explained that the sharp decline in XRP’s 30-day MVRV metric, which tracks whether recent buyers are sitting on profits or losses, pushed the token into an “extreme opportunity zone.” According to Santiment, such deeply negative readings have historically followed heavy sell-offs that left a large portion of short-term holders underwater, often reflecting high fear and frustration across the market. 

For context, XRP’s 30-day MVRV briefly popped into positive territory in early January 2026 before crashing hard throughout the rest of January and into February, falling into deeply negative territory as XRP fell from the $1.88-$1.95 range earlier this year to around $1.33.

XRP Momentum Weakens 

Santiment noted that XRP rallied aggressively through late 2024 and early 2025 amid optimism surrounding Ripple adoption, speculation about exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and improving regulatory clarity in the United States following the advancement of crypto market-structure legislation. However, repeated selloffs since then have pushed many short-term XRP traders into huge unrealized losses, with the average 30-day holder now down about 55%, according to the firm.

XRP’s price was trading at $1.33, down by 0.8% during the past 24 hours. On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment around XRP remained in the ‘bearish’ zone, while chatter around it stayed in the ‘low’ levels during the past day. 

XRP Technical Setup Remains Fragile 

The asset was trading at $1.3326, up 0.29% on the XRP/USD chart, consolidating after hitting a high of $1.37. On the 1-hour MACD, an early bullish crossover below zero suggested a relief bounce was possible with near resistance at $1.3400 and support at $1.3280.

The 12-hour MACD continues to sink into the red at -0.0187, suggesting more selling pressure. Traders are looking to reclaim $1.3400 for a move to $1.3600; a break below $1.3050 would open deeper downside. For the broader trend to flip bullish, XRP would need momentum on the 12-hour to curl back toward zero alongside a reclaim of mid-range structure.

What Analysts Are Saying?

Crypto analysts on X are growing more bullish on XRP as the final days of May approach, citing a confluence of macro, institutional, and market-structure catalysts. For example, TheCryptoSquire pointed to an unverified rumor of a major liquidity injection by the Federal Reserve on May 28, “potentially one of the biggest days” for XRP and the wider crypto market. The Fed last injected $8.26 billion into markets overnight on May 1st. 

Another big market-access catalyst mentioned by XRP analyst Amonyx is the launch of 24/7 XRP futures trading on CME and Nasdaq starting May 29. He called the rollout a major Wall Street on-ramp and urged patience ahead of what he expects to be major moves once the new venues go live.

Read also: BlackRock’s IBIT Sees Record $1.29B Bitcoin ETF Block Trade – As Crypto Faces ‘Identity Crisis’ Debate

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