XRP funding spike masks ongoing long squeeze

TLDR

XRP (XRP) is seeing a sharp funding rate spike even as data shows an ongoing long squeeze in derivatives.

1. XRPs funding flipped sharply positive while price slipped and millions in long positions were liquidated.
2. Rising or positive funding with weak spot and heavy long liquidations usually signals stressed leverage, not clean bullish demand.
3. Key tells now are funding normalizing, open interest behavior, and whether XRP can reclaim resistance around the 1.35 to 1.40 dollar band.

Deep Dive

1. What Is Happening In XRP Derivatives

Analytics firms report XRPs funding rate jumped into positive territory, with one reading up roughly 158 percent in a day to about 0.0028, after a prior negative phase where shorts were paid to hold. At the same time, XRPs price slid toward the 1.33 to 1.36 dollar area and is down around 7 percent on the week, while roughly 6 to 7 million dollars of XRP positions were liquidated in 24 hours, mostly longs, which is textbook long squeeze behavior. Reports also show open interest rising to the 900 million to 2.6 billion dollar region across venues, confirming that leverage remains elevated despite price weakness.

2. Why A Funding Spike Can Mask A Long Squeeze

Funding is the periodic fee between longs and shorts in perpetual futures; positive funding means longs are paying shorts, which is often read as bullish. Here, that signal is misleading. Articles highlight that open interest increases have come with falling Cumulative Volume Delta and repeated long liquidations, which implies new shorts and forced long exits rather than strong new buyers. One analysis notes a rapid drop below 1.40 dollars with a late-session volume spike driven by forced unwinds, not organic demand, which aligns with a mechanical long squeeze even as funding turns positive.

3. Key Levels And Metrics To Watch Next

Several desks flag 1.35 dollars as near-term support and 1.40 dollars as key resistance that could flip the script if reclaimed. There is also an estimated 300 million dollar plus short cluster just above current price, which could fuel a short squeeze if XRP pushes into that zone with improving spot demand. Until then, useful tells are: funding drifting back toward neutral, open interest either stabilizing or falling with fewer liquidations, and macro conditions calming, since broader long-side liquidations across majors are adding pressure.

Conclusion

XRPs derivatives picture currently combines a bullish-looking funding spike with classic long squeeze dynamics, where overleveraged longs are still being flushed out. Unless spot demand improves and key resistance is reclaimed, the funding spike is better viewed as a symptom of unstable positioning than a reliable bullish signal.