Key takeaways
- XRP gains over 4% as short liquidations accelerate
- Bearish leveraged positions account for most forced closures
- October 23 XRPL upgrade adds another market catalyst
XRP rebounded more than 4% on October 21, recovering toward $1.35 as short sellers faced mounting liquidations ahead of a scheduled XRP Ledger network upgrade.
An October 21 market snapshot showed XRP gaining approximately 4.7% over 24 hours, with trading concentrated between $1.29 and $1.35. The recovery followed several weeks of weakness that had pushed the cryptocurrency below $1.40.
Derivatives data showed approximately $4.4 million in XRP positions liquidated during a rolling 24-hour period, including around $3.6 million in shorts. The figures suggest bearish traders were particularly exposed to the rebound, although liquidations alone do not explain the entire price movement.
XRP Short Liquidations Accelerate as Price Tests Resistance
The latest advance brought XRP closer to a resistance zone around $1.35–$1.38, where traders are watching for signs of a sustained recovery.
Approximately 80% of the $4.4 million in reported liquidations came from short positions, according to derivatives tracker TRdesk. Liquidating leveraged short positions generally requires buying back exposure, potentially amplifying upward price movements.
However, XRP remains well below its earlier October trading levels. The cryptocurrency's recent market-value decline highlighted how severely the broader correction affected holders despite expanding institutional interest.
A sustained break above $1.38 could strengthen the recovery case and bring $1.42 into focus. Conversely, renewed selling below $1.32 would expose support around $1.29, followed by $1.28.
XRP Ledger's October 23 Upgrade Approaches
The price recovery comes ahead of the XRP Ledger's expected October 23 activation of fixCleanup3_4_0, a maintenance amendment addressing multiple technical issues.
The changes include corrections involving token permissions, escrow transactions, automated market makers and calculations associated with future lending infrastructure.
As previously detailed in Coinpaper's upgrade analysis, the amendment had secured sufficient validator backing to begin its activation countdown.
However, the update does not activate native lending on XRPL.
The proposed lending protocol and its Single Asset Vault components still require separate validator approval.
The distinction matters because the network's broader credit-market expansion could eventually introduce additional financial applications for XRP, but those developments are not guaranteed by Friday's maintenance patch.
XRP Price Prediction: Can Bulls Reclaim $1.40?
Despite the short-term rebound, XRP continues to face uncertainty around institutional demand and broader cryptocurrency market sentiment.
US spot XRP ETFs previously attracted inflows for 13 consecutive weeks, demonstrating that investment through regulated products does not necessarily prevent declines in the underlying cryptocurrency.
At the same time, Ripple's expanding institutional strategy includes potential uses of XRP as collateral, although these applications remain distinct from near-term exchange trading.
For the bullish scenario, XRP must establish support above $1.35 before challenging $1.38 and potentially $1.42. A rejection at resistance would instead put $1.32 and the recent $1.29 low back into focus.
The October 23 upgrade could influence sentiment, but its completion would not independently establish a new upward trend. Sustained buying demand and broader market conditions remain decisive for the next price movement.
