XRP funding rates on Binance skyrocketed 266% week-over-week to 0.007, while open interest continued to shrink, hitting $399 million by July 10, according to data from CryptoQuant. The sharp move followed a massive 64.9 million XRP deposit onto the exchange on July 7, with outflows that day totaling only about 49 million XRP, a stark imbalance flagged by analyst CryptoOnchain. The unusual spot flow capped four days of heavy trading between July 4 and July 8, which the analyst read as aggressive repositioning rather than fresh conviction.
Despite the funding rate spike, derivatives data painted a bearish picture: total open interest on Binance had already fallen from over $500 million in mid-June to $431 million by July 4, then to $399 million six days later. Long liquidations surged 94% over the week, running 172% above their three-month average, while short liquidations remained subdued, down 53%. This indicates that leveraged longs were repeatedly punished by the dipping price.
On-chain metrics also reflected weak sentiment. Active addresses were 11% below their three-month baseline, though transaction counts inched up 3–4% recently, and the NVT ratio eased, suggesting stabilization rather than further deterioration. Another CryptoQuant contributor, Darkfost, noted that 30-day aggregated funding on Binance had reached an extreme negative threshold, with roughly 40% of altcoins trading near all-time lows. XRP itself is down about 70% from its July 2025 high of $2.45. Bearish funding has persisted since the start of the year, and Darkfost recalled a similar pattern in April 2025 when XRP touched $1.25 amid heavy short positioning before rebounding 126%. Traders are now watching whether a funding reset or medium-term reversal could follow.
