Ripple’s monthly escrow release on Sept. 1 unlocked 1 billion XRP worth roughly $1.38 billion, split across three transactions of 500 million, 400 million and 100 million XRP. Rather than crashing, XRP traded around $1.38 at release and near $1.42 five days later.
The key reason is that the headline unlock figure overstates new supply. Ripple returned 700 million XRP to escrow, leaving only 300 million XRP outside newly created escrow contracts, and that remainder was not necessarily sold on exchanges immediately.
Predictability also cushioned the market. Ripple’s monthly unlocks have occurred for years, so traders anticipate them. The same dynamic appeared in June when a 1 billion XRP release did not suddenly enter circulation.
Institutional demand has added another source of buying. U.S. spot XRP ETFs attracted $14.38 million on Sept. 1, extending an 11-session inflow streak, even as Bitcoin funds suffered outflows. Meanwhile, XRPL AI payment activity jumped 29%, and RippleX has discussed XRP collateral as a potential institutional use case.
For investors, the figure to watch is not the gross unlock but how much XRP is re-escrowed, retained, moved, and whether exchange supply actually rises. September illustrates the difference: 1 billion XRP was unlocked, but 700 million went back into escrow.
