- Mega whale activity overshadowed Ripple escrow relock, reshaping XRP supply dynamics.
- Rapid XRP relock limited circulation as large holders quietly repositioned.
- Whale driven XRP transfers signaled strategic accumulation despite muted price action.
XRP network activity drew strong attention after a major whale transaction unfolded alongside Ripple’s scheduled escrow process, triggering renewed discussion around supply movement and large holder positioning. Blockchain data confirmed that Ripple released 1,000,000,000 (1 billion) XRP from escrow as part of its regular monthly cycle, a process the company has followed consistently for years.
Shortly after the release, 700,000,000 XRP were relocked back into escrow in a swift follow-up move, and the relock occurred in less than 24 hours, limiting the net circulating increase. As a result, only about 300,000,000 XRP remained outside escrow from the monthly release, which eased immediate concerns around sudden supply pressure entering open markets.
Ripple Escrow Timing Limits Supply Impact
The speed of the relock played a key role in shaping market interpretation, as returning most of the released XRP to escrow quickly reduced the effective supply increase. This approach aligned with Ripple’s historical escrow management strategy and prevented the full 1,000,000,000 XRP from remaining in active circulation.
Also Read: Why is XRP Price Suddenly Rising Today?
Source: Whales Alert
Market participants closely tracked wallet movements following the relock, and attention soon shifted away from escrow mechanics toward large holder behavior. During the same window, a separate and significantly larger XRP movement took place across the network, as a mega whale shifted approximately $3,600,000,000 ($3.6 billion) worth of XRP within that short period.
Mega Whale Transfer Shifts Market Attention
On-chain data showed that the $3.6 billion XRP movement did not originate from Ripple-controlled escrow wallets, instead reflecting activity among large private holders operating on the secondary market.
According to analyst STEPH IS CRYPTO, the transfer pointed toward accumulation rather than distribution behavior, with wallet metrics showing balance increases among addresses holding between 1,000,000,000 and 10,000,000,000 XRP.
At the same time, exchange inflow data remained relatively stable across major trading platforms, suggesting the XRP was not immediately positioned for sale. Additionally, the timing of the whale movement alongside the escrow relock altered broader market interpretation, as the actions appeared to offset each other structurally rather than amplify supply concerns.
Ripple’s relock returned a large portion of released XRP into time-locked escrow contracts, while the whale transfer concentrated supply into fewer large wallets. Consequently, available liquid XRP in open markets may have tightened during the period, a condition that often draws attention from traders monitoring future volatility dynamics.
Despite the scale of the transactions, XRP price action remained largely muted, and such divergence between price behavior and on-chain activity often reflects deliberate positioning by large holders. The rapid escrow relock and the $3,600,000,000 XRP whale shift formed a closely timed sequence, with combined data pointing to accumulation-driven behavior unfolding alongside disciplined escrow management rather than broad market distribution.
Also Read: Expert Says Ignore XRP in 2026 at Your Own Peril, Here’s Why
