XRP Holds Near $1.10 as CLARITY Act Vote Keeps Markets on Edge

XRP (XRP) is holding a narrow range around $1.10 as traders wait for a looming U.S. congressional vote on the ‘CLARITY Act,’ a digital asset market structure bill that could reshape how tokens are classified and regulated. While price action remains subdued, renewed attention is landing on Ripple’s ecosystem push and a recent XRP Ledger (XRPL) performance upgrade—developments that could influence longer-term adoption even as near-term sentiment stays cautious.

According to CoinMarketCap data taken early Sunday UTC (July 26), XRP was changing hands at roughly $1.098, up about 0.5% over the past 24 hours. Gains over the last week were modest at around 0.6%, but the broader trend remains under pressure: the token is down roughly 17.3% over 60 days and 23.2% over 90 days. XRP’s market capitalization stood near $68.7 billion, keeping it in sixth place among cryptocurrencies by value.

Trading activity, however, has cooled sharply. XRP’s 24-hour volume was about $536.7 million, down nearly 47.5% from the prior day—an indication that speculative churn has eased as investors adopt a wait-and-see stance ahead of the regulatory catalyst. Circulating supply is approximately 62.53 billion XRP, about 62.5% of the 100 billion maximum.

Technicians increasingly describe the market as boxed in. DMarketForces identified a short-term band with support around $1.05 and resistance near $1.15. A decisive move above $1.15 on strong volume would likely be read as a shift in momentum, while a breakdown below $1.05 could open the door to a deeper move toward $0.95. The outlet added that, during the latest risk-off stretch, XRP fell more than Bitcoin (BTC) (about -1.8% versus -1.3%), a pattern consistent with ‘beta’ behavior—higher-volatility assets tending to drop harder when overall sentiment deteriorates.

Even prediction markets reflect the stalemate. On Polymarket, short-horizon contracts tracking XRP’s four-hour direction have been close to evenly split, suggesting the market has yet to form a clear consensus on the next move.

ETF flows add a mixed layer to the picture. MEXC Research said cumulative net inflows into spot XRP ETFs have surpassed $1 billion, underscoring meaningful ‘institutional demand’ over time. Yet the same research noted that inflows have slowed in recent sessions, with some net outflows appearing as XRP retreated from the mid-$1.20s to the low-$1.10s. The deceleration suggests that while ETFs may have provided a structural tailwind, they are not currently delivering the incremental buying needed to break the token out of its range.

Derivatives positioning, by contrast, remains active. Per MEXC Research, perpetual futures open interest has risen to roughly 2.14 billion XRP, signaling that leveraged traders are still engaged even as spot enthusiasm fades. Broader crypto sentiment has been categorized in the ‘Fear’ zone, though DMarketForces argued the pressure appears driven more by market-wide conditions than by XRP-specific negative news.

On the technology front, XRPL completed its v3.2.0 mainnet upgrade on June 15. The update renamed the core node software from ‘rippled’ to ‘xrpld’ and reduced node memory usage by as much as 40%. MEXC Research described the changes as a practical efficiency boost for validators and infrastructure operators, strengthening XRPL’s ability to support high-throughput and enterprise-grade workloads. The upgrade is being framed not as routine maintenance, but as groundwork for scaling demand from institutions and large applications.

Ripple’s business development efforts are also widening beyond payments. Made In USA Inc. has adopted XRPL for product authenticity verification and tracking, a use case that positions the ledger for supply-chain transparency and compliance-heavy enterprise applications. Separately, Ripple has made a strategic investment in Notabene, aiming to integrate Ripple’s dollar-pegged stablecoin ‘RLUSD’ into Notabene’s Flow platform and expand compliant stablecoin settlement infrastructure for banks, payment firms, and fintechs.

Still, analysts caution that these ecosystem wins have not translated cleanly into token price strength. Some market participants continue to question how directly Ripple’s product partnerships and XRPL utilization convert into sustained demand for XRP itself—an uncertainty that can cap upside during periods when macro and regulatory signals dominate.

That brings attention back to Washington. The pending vote on the ‘CLARITY Act’ is widely viewed as the key near-term catalyst, with traders watching whether a clearer framework classifying digital assets as securities or commodities could reduce regulatory overhang. TokenPost reported that XRP has been holding above $1 in a ‘steady but cautious’ posture ahead of the decision. If the regulatory news flow turns favorable, technicians say the next immediate test would likely be whether XRP can reclaim and hold above $1.20.

Legal uncertainty had already eased after the SEC’s case against Ripple concluded in August 2025, removing a major overhang that had shadowed XRP for years. When the CLARITY Act advanced through a Senate committee stage, XRP briefly rose toward $1.24 amid expectations of renewed ETF-driven demand. Looking forward, MEXC Research pointed to five structural drivers that may shape XRP’s medium- to long-term trajectory: ETF flows, Ripple’s escrow-based supply management, regulatory stabilization, real payment liquidity, and the broader crypto market cycle.

For now, XRP remains caught between weakening spot momentum and longer-term narratives around regulation and institutional infrastructure. The timing of a genuine ‘structural shift’—where regulatory clarity aligns with renewed demand—may ultimately determine whether the token breaks out of its range or extends its consolidation.