Ripple (XRP) has displayed a lackluster performance compared to the broader cryptocurrency market throughout this year. Witnessing a decline of more than 20% in 2024, it stands in stark contrast to Bitcoin, which has surged by nearly 50%. XRP has failed to keep up with other top ten cryptocurrencies such as Toncoin, Ethereum, and Binance Coin.
Over the last 12 months, XRP has seen a meager rise of just 1.6%, while Bitcoin has experienced a remarkable surge of over 100%. Its underwhelming performance, especially when compared to meme coins like Floki, Pepe, Book of Meme, and Brett, has been a source of frustration for long-term investors.
Despite developers’ efforts to enhance its value through various initiatives, Ripple’s performance continues to lag behind the broader market. For instance, the recent introduction of the XRPL EVM sidechain, capable of accommodating more than 1,000 transactions per second, is a notable development. In a recent statement, developers mentioned their decision to utilize Axelar as the bridge protocol for the platform.
One of the challenges faced by Ripple is the highly competitive and congested nature of the EVM space. As a consequence, several prominent networks that have shifted into this realm, such as IOTA and EOS, have struggled to compete effectively.
Ripple also has intentions to introduce its stablecoin, which will be pegged to the US dollar. However, the stablecoin market is fiercely competitive, and merely possessing a recognized brand name does not ensure success. For instance, PayPal’s PYUSD, with a market cap of $414 million, pales in comparison to USD Coin and Tether.
The underperformance of XRP’s price can be attributed to the lackluster interest among traders and users. The focus of most crypto traders has shifted towards meme coins like Pepe, Book of Meme, and Brett. Furthermore, on-chain data indicates a significant decline in active accounts and transactions throughout this year.
Moreover, despite its legal victory against the SEC last year, Ripple has not managed to onboard many financial services companies to utilize its platform. Analysts are raising doubts regarding the demand for Ripple’s On Demand Liquidity (ODL) solution, particularly at a time when banking giants like JPMorgan and ANZ are exploring their tokenization products.
In essence, XRP’s lackluster performance is a result of weak demand from traders and institutions. There are uncertainties surrounding the success of its growth strategies, such as EVM and stablecoins.
Regarding the XRP price forecast, the token’s decline can be attributed to the formation of a double-top pattern at $0.7484, representing its peak on November 13th and March 13th. A double-top formation is considered one of the most bearish signals in price action analysis. Although the token has slightly risen above its neckline at $0.4872, a death cross was observed on April 14th as the 200-day and 50-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMA) intersected.
As a result, even though XRP has seen a minor rebound over the past two days, its outlook remains pessimistic. The initial target to monitor is at $0.4872; a breach below this level could signal further downside as sellers target the subsequent support at $0.4557.