XRP has been under pressure after failing to hold above $1.40. The token climbed 26% between late February and mid-March, rising from $1.27 on Feb. 28 to $1.60 by March 17. That rally stalled at $1.60, which acted as resistance, and the price has been declining since.
XRP now trades around $1.36, down roughly 15% from that March peak. The price dipped to a recent low of $1.3358 before consolidating. It currently sits below the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average and the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level of the recent down move.
A bearish trend line has formed on the hourly chart, with resistance sitting at $1.3750. The price would need to clear $1.3850 first — the 50% Fibonacci retracement level — before taking on the key $1.40 level.
What’s drawing attention from analysts is the rise in Open Interest during this price decline. On March 25, when XRP was trading at $1.42, total Open Interest stood at $886 million. By March 26, with the price down to $1.36, Open Interest had climbed to $946 million. It has since eased slightly to around $933 million.
XRP: Price Down + Open Interest Up
Juicy. Stay safe friends.
pic.twitter.com/oR1qsa1VRq
— Maartunn (@JA_Maartun) March 26, 2026
CryptoQuant analyst JA Maartunn flagged the divergence between price and Open Interest, calling the setup “juicy” but urging caution.
The OI-weighted funding rate has dropped to -0.0086. Negative funding means traders are paying to hold short positions, confirming that bearish bets are dominant right now.
Liquidation data from Coinglass shows about $70 million in short positions at $1.375, with another $44.98 million near $1.3785. In total, roughly $314 million in short positions are concentrated between $1.375 and $1.405.
If XRP moves into that range, forced buying from liquidated shorts could accelerate the move higher. This type of event is called a short squeeze.
#XRP – The Monthly RSI:
The 1, 2 and 3 Formation: Do you see it.
Structure > Noise pic.twitter.com/12eREPzVIo
— EGRAG CRYPTO (@egragcrypto) March 25, 2026
Two scenarios are in play. In the first, XRP stays below $1.37, sellers hold control, and the price continues to drift lower toward $1.3350 or $1.3220. Below that, $1.30 becomes the next support area.
In the second, XRP pushes into the $1.375–$1.405 zone, triggering a wave of short liquidations. That could rapidly push the price toward $1.4120 and beyond.
At the time of writing, XRP is trading near $1.36, holding above the $1.35 support level, with Open Interest at approximately $933 million.
The post XRP Price: A Short Squeeze Is Brewing — Here’s What the Data Shows appeared first on CoinCentral.
