Ripple, the largest holder of the XRP token, owns around 46.10 billion XRP currently locked in escrows and not part of the circulating supply. On December 1, Ripple released 1 billion tokens, valued at $645 million, keeping 20% of the total.
Notably, each month Ripple unlocks another 1 billion tokens. The company often retains only a fraction of it for its treasury, frequently selling the rest on the market. Finbold has tracked these unlocks through XRP Scan, identifying patterns that affect the asset’s long-term value.
In December, Ripple held back 200 million XRP, consistent with prior months. This amount is now worth roughly $130 million, with each token priced at $0.645 by press time.
Particularly, the company prepared this month’s selling activity by sending the 200 million XRP from Ripple (22) to Ripple (1). Both crypto wallet addresses are controlled by the institution, with the former being the escrow address and the latter used as its liquid treasury.
Ripple’s XRP escrow activity in December
Similarly to November and October, two addresses under the company’s control received the unlocked 1 billion XRP: Ripple (22) and Ripple (23). These addresses then made payments to three other accounts of the same ownership.
- Ripple (1) received 200 million XRP from Ripple (22), which is still liquid and ready to be spent.
- Ripple (11) received 300 million XRP from the remaining tokens unlocked by Ripple (22). Locking this amount in two new escrows of 100 million and 200 million XRP, set to unlock respectively in April and May 2027.
- Ripple (10) received the 500 million XRP from Ripple (23), all re-locked into an escrow set to be unlocked by May 2027.
Interestingly, both Ripple (22) and Ripple (23) still hold 3 billion XRP tokens for monthly escrows that will be unlocked within the next three months until March 1, 2024. These unlocks are a crucial part of XRP’s supply inflation, and cryptocurrency investors must follow further activities for valuable insights.
It is important to understand that Ripple usually liquidates their holdings in strategic moments. Essentially, the sell-offs represent a relevant weight of the token’s 24-hour trading volume, capable of influencing short-term price action.
Disclaimer: The content on this site should not be considered investment advice. Investing is speculative. When investing, your capital is at risk.
