XRP cools upside momentum as Ripple considers US exit

Ripple Executive Chairman Chris Larsen says the company could move to UK or Switzerland, among other crypto-friendly countries

XRP/USD traded in a series of higher lows over the past few days, outshining most of the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market cap with a rally that included over 7% in intraday gains.

The cryptocurrency is however facing massive resistance around $0.25 and could drop to under $0.23 if selling pressure keeps mounting. This is because bulls appear weak amid increased selling pressure seen across the crypto market.

On Tuesday, the entire cryptocurrency market cap dropped by more than $10 billion after US President Donald Trump ended talks about additional COVID-19 relief packages. The news triggered selling pressure within the stock market, which cascaded into crypto to see BTC/USD sink to $10,300 lows and XRP/USD and ETH/USD both lose about 3% of their value in 24 hours.

A bullish break charted on the daily chart suggested XRP/USD was likely to cut above the upper limit of a descending parallel channel. That did not happen and now prices have retreated to the midline and chances of extended losses are likely short term.

Ripple price is currently below the 50 SMA and a retest of the 100 SMA means a drop to lows of $0.244. Below this, XRP/USD has its next major support area nestled around $0.232 — the lower level of the recent downswing from $0.259 highs.

Looking at the 1-hour chart, the bearish outlook could weaken if the MACD strengthens the hidden bullish divergence. Increased sell-off pressure will likely mean bulls will have a tough time trying to defend the $0.23 peg.

Ripple Exec says the company could relocate out of the US

Recent negative regulatory news, especially as it relates to BitMEX’s troubles, sees Ripple’s Executive Chairman Chris Larsen saying that the San Francisco-based company could shift base away from the US.

Speaking at the LA Blockchain Summit on Tuesday, October 6, the Ripple co-founder told a reporter the firm could be forced to move its headquarters to a jurisdiction deemed as crypto-friendly.

According to him, the US was likely to lose to China in this blockchain “cold war,”. In the US, “the message [there] is digital currencies are not welcome…” he noted before adding that “[If] you want to be in this business, you probably should be going somewhere else”.

Countries Ripple could relocate to, if that happens, includes the UK, Switzerland, Singapore and Japan.