 
 
XRP’s early-January rally has been robust sufficient to earn the “new cryptocurrency darling” title in a CNBC section after it outshone Bitcoin and Ether within the first week of 2026.
“The hottest crypto trade of the year is not Bitcoin, it is not Ether, it is XRP,” said CNBC’s Power Lunch host Brian Sullivan on Tuesday.
This comes because the fourth-largest token witnesses a notable resurgence in accumulation exercise by whale entities, signaling a resurgence in institutional or large-scale investor confidence.
XRP Whale Activity Ticks Up
XRP whales seem to stay assured in regards to the prospects of a mega rally, utilizing the current pullback to build up extra tokens.
According to market intelligence platform Santiment, the XRP Ledger has witnessed a major surge in whale transactions exceeding $100,000.
 
On Monday, the XRP community registered 2,170 whale transactions, and on Jan. 6, these transactions spiked to 2,802, marking a three-month excessive. Santiment recommended that this implies volatility could possibly be greater than typical.
An upsurge in giant transactions may sign that whales are scooping up tokens in large portions, elevating volatility and thus impacting costs.
Can Whale Accumulation Reignite XRP?
Given the psychological enhance of renewed whale curiosity, market observers could possibly be more and more assured that XRP is primed to problem and doubtlessly surpass its present lifetime highs within the foreseeable future.
The elevated whale exercise has additionally been supported by regular institutional demand by means of U.S.-listed spot XRP ETFs. These merchandise continued to soak up internet inflows into early January, earlier than breaking what had been the cleanest inflow streak amongst main crypto-based funds on Wednesday.
XRP’s year-to-date return hovers round 14.6%, showcasing the cross-border token’s dominance. This energy is a results of the successful conclusion of the multi-year-long SEC vs. Ripple lawsuit and favorable regulatory developments.