XRP’s May Shows Market Hesitation, But Bullish Bets Signal Confidence Ahead

XRP, the digital token central to Ripple Labs’ cross-border payment system, ended May with a clear sign of market indecision. While price action revealed uncertainty, the options market activity tells a different story — one of sustained bullish confidence.

During May, XRP formed a “doji” candlestick on monthly charts, characterized by a long upper shadow. This pattern, highlighted by TradingView, indicates buyers pushed prices up to $2.65, only to be met by strong resistance from sellers who pulled the price back close to the month’s opening level.

Such a doji following an uptrend often hints at a pause or possible reversal, suggesting XRP’s rally from April lows near $1.60 may be stalling. Reflecting these concerns, some traders bought put options with a $2.40 strike expiring May 30, offering downside protection against further price drops.

Strong Bullish Interest in Options Market

Despite the price hesitation, the broader market mood remains upbeat. Deribit data shows that open interest in XRP options is heavily weighted towards calls with strike prices above $2.60, reflecting continued bullish bets from traders.

Luuk Strijers, CEO of Deribit, told CoinDesk that “XRP’s open interest is steadily climbing, with a high concentration in call options between $2.60 and above $3.00. This pattern underscores persistent optimism even though spot prices hover around $2.16.”

The most heavily traded call options include the $4 strike, which has a notional open interest exceeding $5.3 million. Similarly, the $3 and $3.10 strike calls each have open interest over $5 million. Monthly volumes hover between $65 million and $70 million, predominantly traded on Deribit.

Fundamental Factors Bolster Optimism

The positive outlook is driven by XRP’s strategic role in improving cross-border payment systems. Ripple’s platform addresses inefficiencies in the traditional SWIFT network, targeting a B2B payments market expected to grow from $31.6 trillion in 2024 to $50 trillion by 2031.

Moreover, growing anticipation for a U.S. spot XRP ETF and adoption of XRP as a corporate treasury asset provide strong fundamentals supporting the token’s long-term value proposition.