18-8-2025 – XRP dropped below the critical $3 support level today amid broader crypto market weakness, officially entering a technical bear market after declining 20% from its year-to-date peak.
Despite the sharp selloff, prominent crypto analyst Rekt Fencer sees the pullback as temporary, pointing to what he calls a “too perfect” cup-and-handle formation on XRP’s daily chart. The pattern, which features a rounded bottom followed by consolidation, suggests a potential surge to $6 if the technical setup plays out. Additional chart analysis reveals an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern on the eight-hour timeframe, targeting an initial move to $4.06 based on the formation’s measured move.
Look at this $XRP bowl
It’s too perfect and obvious
Everyone ignores it
Until it goes vertical
Do you really want to fade this? pic.twitter.com/0Dizp4MSjG
— Rekt Fencer (@rektfencer) August 18, 2025
Whale activity continues to support bullish sentiment despite the price decline. One large investor purchased $61 million worth of XRP on Upbit over the weekend, while exchange outflows totaled over $40 million in the past two weeks. Data from CoinGlass shows nearly $1 billion in net spot outflows since late June, indicating investors are moving tokens into self-custody ahead of an expected recovery.
Multiple catalysts could drive XRP higher in the coming months. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse recently predicted SEC approval of spot XRP ETFs by October, which would provide institutional access to the $180 billion asset. Meanwhile, Ripple’s stablecoin RLUSD has grown to $666 million in market capitalization, approaching the $700 million milestone and driving increased utility for the XRP Ledger ecosystem.