Bullish Bets Drive XRP Futures Open Interest to Fresh 5-Month Record

XRP Futures Soar as Bulls Dominate, Yet Spot Price Stays Flat

XRP futures markets are flashing bullish signals, but the spot price remains stubbornly range-bound.

On Monday, open interest in XRP perpetual futures surged to 800 million XRP—the highest level seen since January 19—according to Velo, which tracks USDT- and USD-denominated perpetual contracts on major exchanges like Binance, Bybit, OKX, and Hyperliquid.

Currently, open interest has eased slightly to 743 million XRP but still represents a robust 33% increase since June 22, when XRP dipped to a local low of $1.90.

Open interest reflects how many active futures contracts exist and often signals fresh capital entering the market. However, it doesn’t immediately reveal whether traders are bullish or bearish.

Recent data suggests a clear tilt toward optimism. Funding rates on XRP perpetual futures have consistently stayed positive and even crossed an annualized 10% at times—implying that traders are willing to pay a premium to hold long positions.

Perpetual futures operate with funding payments roughly every eight hours. When the perpetual price trades above the spot market, long traders typically pay shorts to maintain their positions.

Supporting the bullish tone, Binance’s “top trader long/short ratio” for the XRP/USDT pair sits at 1.90, per Coinglass data—meaning nearly twice as many traders are betting on rising prices than falling ones. Short positions benefit if prices drop.

Adding to the bullish sentiment, traders on Deribit have been actively targeting higher strike prices through call options on XRP.

Yet despite the futures market’s enthusiasm, XRP’s spot price remains subdued. On Monday, it briefly touched $2.35—a high unseen since the end of May—before slipping back to around $2.25, where it’s been trading in a tight range with minimal volatility.