Ripple Unlocked 1 Billion XRP — But That's Not the Sell Wall You Think It Is

Ripple unlocked 1 billion XRP tokens as part of its regular monthly escrow release, according to blockchain tracker Whale Alert.

The move comes as XRP’s price shows renewed momentum but still struggles to fully break its recent downtrend.

What the September Unlock Actually Means

Three separate transactions released 500 million, 400 million, and 100 million XRP from Ripple-controlled escrow accounts. The release follows Ripple’s established mechanism, which allows up to 1 billion XRP to become available at the start of each month.

Ripple originally placed 55 billion XRP into escrow back in 2017. At the time, the company said any unused tokens would return to escrow for future releases.

As of August 31, roughly 32.28 billion XRP remained locked in Ripple’s on-ledger escrow, according to an on-chain tracker that calculates the balance directly from active XRPL escrow objects. After this latest unlock, that figure drops to approximately 31.14 billion XRP.

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That leaves roughly 31.28% of XRP’s fixed 100 billion maximum supply still locked inside Ripple’s escrow.

An unlock, however, does not mean Ripple actually sold 1 billion XRP. The company has historically re-escrowed a large portion of each monthly release, meaning tokens reaching the broader market tend to be far smaller than the headline figure suggests.

XRP’s Price Still Fighting for Momentum

XRP currently trades near $1.36, falling 0.5% over the past 24 hours, though the token has fallen about 8.20% over the past week after nearly touching $1.70 in August.

The token has still climbed roughly 30.8% over the past 30 days and 14.5% over the last 90 days, though it remains under pressure on a year-to-date basis.

Leveraged positions felt some pain during this stretch. More than $3.32 million worth of XRP positions were liquidated over the past 24 hours, with short liquidations accounting for roughly $1.19 million against about $2.13 million in long liquidations, according to Coinglass data.

The mismatch between short and long liquidations suggests bearish traders bore the brunt of recent volatility, even as XRP’s broader trend still lacks a decisive breakout.

Whether the token can build on its 30-day gains likely depends on demand absorbing this month’s escrow release without adding fresh selling pressure.

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