Ripple co-founder keeps selling his XRP at the peaks

While investors hope for a recovery in the XRP price, one well-known name within Ripple always seems to act at the perfect time. It is co-founder Chris Larsen who is putting considerable pressure on the price of the digital currency with his sales. And that is causing growing concern among investors.

Chris Larsen has already cashed in more than $764 million

Chris Larsen has made a profit of more than $764 million from selling XRP since the beginning of 2018. This is evident from an analysis by blockchain researcher Maartunn that he shared on X. According to him, Larsen always does this around local price peaks of the XRP token and that puts considerable pressure on market sentiment.

Larsen’s actions are causing unrest among investors, especially now that it is known that he still owns approximately 2.58 billion XRP, Maartunn said in an earlier investigation. That represents a value of almost $9 billion. Experts warn that such sales could significantly hinder the recovery of the XRP price.

On top of the potential selling pressure from Chris Larsen is Ripple’s escrow account. This is a kind of digital vault in which billions of XRP are stored. Ripple Labs established this system in 2017 to increase confidence in the digital currency. Until then, the company had direct control over some 55 billion XRP, raising concerns among investors about sudden selloffs and sharp price swings.

Although this gradual release is an improvement, a maximum of 1 billion XRP will still be released every month. This can temporarily cause extra sales pressure. In practice, Ripple often sells several hundred million XRP per month, depending on market conditions.

Analyst sees parallels with previous peaks

Meanwhile, XRP is not having its best days. While the token reached a new all-time high of $3.65 in July, the token has now fallen by 34.1 percent to a price of $2.40.

Yet not everyone remains negative. Analyst Amonyx remains optimistic about the medium term. He shares a chart comparing the current crypto market with previous cycles of altcoins in 2013, 2017 and 2021. Each cycle showed the same pattern: a rally to a new all-time high, followed by a correction and then another sharp peak.

According to the analyst, the market now seems to be going through a similar phase, which makes him very optimistic. XRP is one of the projects that usually does well during an altseason. If the market picks up, it is obvious that XRP will also benefit. “Buy XRP now, or cry later,” Amonyx said.