Ripple’s [XRP] price structure has been trending downwards, printing lower highs while sliding from above $3.50 toward the $1.50 zone.

As prices weakened, derivatives activity moved in the opposite direction, creating a visible divergence that framed the current positioning.

According to Maartun, a crypto analyst, Open Interest (OI) expanded by roughly +12% in the past 24 hours, at press time.

This was not in a single spike but a sustained build across multiple sessions, particularly during relief bounces in November and early January.

This rise aligned with increased ETF desk activity and heavier hedging flows, suggesting institutional participation alongside directional bets.

Yet the context matters. Rising OI into a falling price usually signals something other than pure accumulation. Instead, it often reflects speculative leverage entering short exposure or late long positioning attempting dip entries.

Liquidation clusters and sell alerts near local tops reinforce that leverage, not spot demand, drives the expansion. As positioning thickens while price compresses, market fragility increases rather than stabilizes.

Leverage expansion during price decline often precedes volatility expansion, rather than immediate reversal.

Derivatives positioning signals compression

XRP’s derivatives market reveals mounting pressure beneath its price action. Funding Rates, which have hovered near neutral, have recently shifted slightly negative. 

This shift shows shorts paying longs, pointing to growing bearish crowding rather than balanced positioning.

As this develops, OI-weighted funding tightens while price falls from the $3.00 region toward $1.50, reinforcing that leverage expansion is driving the move rather than spot selling.

The Long/Short Ratio adds further context. Seller dominance remains visible across several intervals, with taker sell volume exceeding buy pressure while price trends lower.

This alignment reflects clear directional conviction instead of random market activity. Yet liquidation mapping introduces another layer.

Heatmap ladders cluster heavily between $1.35 and $1.45 above price, while deeper long liquidations rest near $1.18–$1.22 below.

This stacked positioning creates two volatility pathways. Negative funding combined with elevated OI builds short-squeeze potential if the price moves into overhead ladders.

On the other hand, failure to rise exposes trapped long positions to cascading liquidations. Market structure, therefore, remains squeeze-prone, not trend-resolved.