
The run, however, started from a hole as $XRP slid to roughly $1.26 in mid-September, and the “below $1.30” contract in Kalshi’s companion low-price market paid out on Sept. 15. From there, $XRP tagged $1.64 on Sept. 23, its best print of the month, before sliding back toward $1.50.
Holders are still sore, though, and Bitcoin.com News reported recently that $XRP’s average long-term trader is still down 11.75% on a 365-day basis, according to Santiment, even after the push above $1.60.
The 9.8% Problem
At $1.55 early Saturday, $XRP needs to gain about 9.8% to reach $1.70 before 11:59 p.m. ET on Sept. 30. That kind of move isn’t unusual for $XRP, which ran from $1.41 to $1.61 across Sept. 21 and Sept. 22.
The finish line has a catch, though. Kalshi settles on CF Benchmarks’ $XRP reference rate, using a per-minute average that strips out the top and bottom 20% of prices. A one-minute wick on a single exchange won’t count. $XRP has to hold above the level long enough to drag that trimmed average with it.
The backdrop isn’t doing $XRP many favors either, as bitcoin’s price is stuck near $84,000 after stalling below $87,000 this week, and $XRP’s pullbacks have tracked bitcoin’s. Traders are also watching the $157 million in $XRP stolen in the Bitget hack, which sits in wallets nobody can freeze.
The Longer Bet Went the Opposite Direction
While September odds cooled, Kalshi’s full-year $XRP market warmed up, with the contract on $XRP topping $2.00 in 2026 rising to 59 cents from 53 cents a day earlier. The $2.50 line climbed to 33 cents from 26 cents, and $3.00 moved to 24 cents from 19 cents.
It’s the same split Bitcoin.com News spotted in Kalshi’s bitcoin price markets earlier this week, when year-end $100,000 odds rose as September’s $90,000 odds slipped. In sum, traders seem happier backing a rally by December than one that has to show up in the next five days.
Lastly, fund flows have given the bulls some cover as U.S. spot $XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) took in $22.65 million on Sept. 25, led by Bitwise. That’s steady buying, but it hasn’t been enough to push $XRP back above $1.60. The next week or so will, therefore, be extremely crucial.