XRP Flashes 3 Warning Signs as Big Buyers Step Back

October has tested crypto markets, and XRP (XRP) price has struggled to keep its footing. The token has dropped by double digits this month, including a 4.81% slide over the past week to $1.30.

The decline comes as XRP flashes 3 bearish signs at once. Whales are withdrawing less from exchanges, more tokens are landing on these platforms, and spot ETF demand has stalled.

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Binance Whales Seem to Be Waiting for a Cheaper Entry

The first sign comes from Binance, where whale outflows have fallen to their lowest level in 5 years, according to on-chain analyst Darkfost. Their 90-day average now stands at $49.7 million, down from $3.5 billion in February 2025.

Darkfost described that earlier wave as heavy accumulation. The analyst said whales are probably waiting for a better price before stepping back in. 

XRP has held up relatively well during this bear market, so its price has not fallen enough to draw them in. In 2022 and 2023, by comparison, whales found prices attractive enough to accumulate heavily.

“From a long-term perspective, this suggests XRP could lack buying volume without whale support. That said, it’s not a hard rule, sometimes the trend reverses precisely when volumes and interest collapse,” the analyst added.

More XRP Is Sitting Where It Can Be Sold

Exchange deposits provide the second sign. Crypto exchanges received 6.05 billion XRP over 30 days, a 7-month high, according to Arab Chain. Binance alone took 2.46 billion XRP, roughly 40% of the total. 

The analyst cautioned that rising deposits do not automatically signal selling. Wallet transfers, asset redistribution, and heavier trading can produce the same pattern.

Even so, the new deposits add to the XRP reserves already sitting on exchanges. Those tokens would be easier to absorb with steady institutional demand, but spot ETF flows point the other way. 

ETF Buyers Go Quiet After Their Strongest Stretch Since December

US spot XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) lost a net $1.84 million in the week ending October 16, per SoSoValue. The outflow ended a 13-week inflow streak.

Flows have thinned through October, with zero net flows in 4 of the last 7 trading sessions. As a result, October inflows total just $10.25 million so far, against $121.4 million in September.

Total net assets fell to $1.48 billion from a $1.77 billion peak on September 25. Cumulative inflows barely moved, so XRP’s falling price drove most of that drop.

XRP’s Calendar Offers Little Relief Before November

That price weakness shows in XRP’s monthly returns. August and September, the strongest two-month stretch of ETF inflows since December, were also XRP’s best months of 2026.

XRP gained 30% in August and 7.95% in September, according to CryptoRank, but has fallen 12.5% since October 1.

History offers little comfort for the weeks ahead. XRP has closed 8 of its 13 Octobers lower, and its median November return is minus 10%.

November’s 80.2% average gain looks stronger, but outsized rallies in 2013, 2020, and 2024 inflate that figure.

A rebound in whale withdrawals or ETF inflows would offer the first evidence that XRP buyers are returning.

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