Is It a Bull Trap According to Reddit?

• XRP hit about $0.99 on August 17, then surged roughly 50% to around $1.50 by August 23.
• A lot of Reddit users called the rally a bull trap, citing unchanged macro conditions.
• Spot XRP ETFs saw roughly $39.78 million in inflows last week, $1.55 billion overall.

XRP has made a surprisingly fast comeback after slipping under $1 earlier in August. It hit about $0.99 on August 17, then surged roughly 50% to around $1.50 by August 23, pushing its market value up by more than $30 billion in less than a week. As of August 24, XRP’s price is hovering at approximately $1.48.

When something jumps that fast, it’s only natural to wonder: is this the start of a new bull run for XRP, or just a brief recovery before more downside?

A number of Reddit users in the XRP community are definitely leaning toward the second view.

Why Some Reddit Users Think This is a Bull Trap

One of the most skeptical comments said the rally was “more likely a bull trap,” arguing that the bigger economic picture hasn’t changed enough to call it a new bull run. Numerous Reddit users agreed, saying the bull run is still months away. 

Another user said they think XRP will drop back to roughly $1.05 before eventually hitting $1.75.

Others were even more doubtful, with one user simply saying: “Bull Trap. Buy at .60 cents,” while another stated that XRP’s price won’t see a sustainable move until it gets meaningful real-world use.

There was also worry amongst Redditors that everyday investors might once again end up as exit liquidity for the larger holders.

One commenter claimed that big wallets had stacked up about 300 million XRP over the last month and a half while prices were around $1, suggesting retail investors might be jumping in only after the whales had already bought. 

Another commenter summarized the concern bluntly: “Retail always gets screwed,” although there were some who saw XRP’s rally as good news.

Related: XRP’s Institutional Adoption Is Growing But Is Its Price Ready to Catch Up?

Notable XRP ETF Inflows

Still, outside of Reddit-based sentiment, there are indeed some market factors backing this rebound.

For instance, spot XRP ETFs saw roughly $39.78 million in inflows last week, their best weekly showing since May. Overall net inflows have climbed to around $1.55 billion.

However, it’s important to keep ETF flows in perspective.

XRP’s market cap is now over $90 billion, and while tens of millions in weekly inflows is a solid number, it’s not big enough by itself to explain a lasting shift in the asset’s overall value. So, we’ll soon see whether this rally can hold up after the first burst of buying and short covering fades.

Related: XRP Whales Accumulate 300M XRP: Can a $1.50 Breakout Open a Run to $2