XRP (XRP) Price Action: Prepares for Institutional Debut on CME Futures Market

X.R.P. (XRP) has been experiencing price volatility while simultaneously achieving a milestone with its debut on the CME futures market.

XRP price has been testing the $2.40 resistance, while CME futures saw limited volume in their debut.

What Happened: XRP price faced rejection at the $2.45 zone and started a fresh decline to test support around the $2.28 level. The price formed a low at $2.2848 and attempted to recover.

The recovery pushed XRP back above the $2.35 level and the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average. This move also brought the price above the 50% Fibonacci retracement level of the recent downward move from the $1.82 low to the $2.449 high.

However, XRP faces technical resistance near the $2.40 level, where a bearish trend line has formed with resistance at this level on the hourly chart.

The first major resistance is positioned near the $2.42 level, which is close to the 76.4% Fibonacci retracement level of the downward move from the $2.449 swing high to the $2.848 low.

If XRP breaks above the $2.42 resistance, the next targets could be $2.50, followed by $2.58 and potentially $2.65 or $2.68 in the near term. The major hurdle for bulls stands at the $2.80 level.

Related Link: How High Can XRP Price Go In 2025?

CME Futures Launch:

In a development that could impact future price action, XRP futures contracts began trading on CME Group's (NASDAQ:CME) derivatives platform on Friday. The contracts recorded approximately $1.5 million in trading volume during their first session.

The contracts, which are now available for trading on CME's platform, offer a dual structure with standard and micro contracts.

Early reporting data from CME showed that the volume was split between the two types of contracts. There were four standard contracts traded, each representing 50,000 XRP and totaling around $480,000 in notional volume at an average price of about $2.40.

The majority of the activity came from 106 micro contracts, which represent 2,500 XRP each. These micro contracts accounted for over $1 billion in additional volume.

The contracts are cash-settled and benchmarked to the CME CF XRP-Dollar Reference Rate, which is published daily at 4:00 P.M. London time.

CME's dual contract structure is designed to attract both institutional players and smaller market participants, offering flexibility for various hedging and trading strategies.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse highlighted the importance of this development, posting on X: "The launch of regulated XRP Futures on @CMEGroup marks a key institutional milestone for XRP." He also noted that Hidden Road executed the first block trade.

XRP Price Analysis:

If XRP fails to clear the $2.42 resistance zone, another decline could begin. The first support is positioned near the $2.35 level, while the next major support level is at $2.32.

A downside break and close below the $2.32 level could continue the decline toward the $2.20 support. The next major support level sits near the $2.12 level.

Technical indicators are showing mixed signals. The MACD for XRP/USD is losing pace in the bearish zone, while the RSI is now above the 50 level, which suggests some bullish momentum.

The CFTC's classification of XRP as a commodity cleared the regulatory path for CME to offer these futures products. This regulatory clarity has led some analysts to suggest that a spot XRP ETF could be on the horizon.

ETF Store president Nate Geraci commented that with CFTC-regulated contracts now trading, spot XRP ETFs are "only a matter of time."