FedNow and Gemini open the rails
FedNow Payments, the settlement service, now lets institutions move money over Ripple's tokens, thanks to the Volante integration. That gives XRP a foot in the door for faster payment flows. Gemini's Singapore platform also flipped on native XRP deposits and withdrawals on the XRP Ledger. These aren't headline numbers, but they're the kind of plumbing that lets money move in and out without friction.
The numbers behind the spike
Active addresses jumped from 47,180 to over 356,000 in a few days, a 650% surge. On-chain data shows whales bought about 400 million XRP during the same stretch. Spot XRP ETFs took in nearly $40 million last week, their best week since May, and total cumulative flows crossed $1.55 billion, a record. The volume is real.
Technicals and the pullback
The price hit $1.70, then pulled back to $1.50. Analysts say XRP needs to reclaim the $1.65-$1.70 zone to signal a real bull phase. Trader CasiTrades pointed out that XRP hit the macro 0.618 resistance and got rejected, meaning it needs to break above and then retest that level as support. Right now it's hanging just below that line.
Regulatory tailwinds
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse was at the White House Crypto Summit and the CFTC's Innovation Advisory Committee, where he said all parties want clear regulation, likely through the CLARITY Act. That kind of clarity would make institutions more comfortable holding XRP. It's still a wait-and-see, but the signal is constructive.
The next test is whether XRP can reclaim that $1.65-$1.70 area. If it does, the bull case gets real. If not, the $1.50 pull
