TL;DR

• XRP experienced a sharp decline, briefly falling below $2.20 following a broader crypto market correction.
• Despite the dip many analysts foresee the asset rebounding to targets as high as $5, with some projecting even greater peaks if a FOMO-driven rally occurs.

XRP Follows the Market Decline

Despite the enhanced volatility, the first half of December has been quite successful for Ripple’s XRP. At the start of the month, its price surpassed a multi-year high of $2.80, while at the beginning of this week, it consolidated above $2.50.

However, things took a sudden turn on December 18, with XRP plunging below $2.30. Several hours ago, the valuation dipped under $2.20. Currently, XRP is around $2.23 after a slight rebound, which represents a 6% decline on a daily scale. 

Perhaps the most obvious factor that has impacted the price of the token is the severe correction of the entire cryptocurrency sector. The global crypto market capitalization is down almost 9% in the last 24 hours, currently set at around $3.42 trillion (CoinGecko’s data).

Bitcoin (BTC), which hit a new all-time high of over $108,000 on December 17, is now worth less than $96,000. Ethereum (ETH) tumbled below $3,300, while Solana (SOL), Dogecoin (DOGE), Cardano (ADA), and many more are down by double digits. 

The market started bleeding heavily shortly after the Federal Reserve announced its latest interest rate cut. It reduced the benchmark by 0.25%, but Jerome Powell hinted that next year, the policy might be halted due to an increase in the inflation rate. 

In addition to that, the spot Bitcoin ETFs witnessed their biggest outflows in a single day. As CryptoPotato reported, over $670 million were withdrawn from the financial vehicles in total on a 24-hour scale, with Fidelity’s FBTC and Grayscale’s BTC leading the pack – $208.5 and $188.6 million, respectively.

XRP’s Next Potential Targets

Despite the substantial plunge, numerous analysts remain optimistic that XPR’s bull run is far from over. The popular X user Crypto Bitlord believes the latest correction has represented a local bottom, after which XRP could surge to as high as $5. 

Other market observers who recently chipped in are Dark Defender and Armando Pantoja. The former set $5.85 and $8.76 as short-term targets, while the latter assumed XRP could be headed toward $2.78 and then $3.87. Pantoja went even further, predicting a mass FOMO effect if the price reach $10-$12, and “that’s when it will get crazy.”