How XRP Price Reacted to Rumors of Gary Gensler’s Resignation

Yesterday, Ripple’s (XRP) price soared to the highest level since July 2023 following rumors that US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler could soon resign. This development ensured that the altcoin was the highest gainer out of the top 10 cryptos.

But there were other reasons why XRP rallied. This on-chain analysis reveals all there is to know about the development.

Gensler’s Note Sends Ripple Soaring as Whales Pour in $2.75 Billion

On Thursday, November 14, as XRP traded around $0.69, a statement from SEC Chair Gary Gensler drew market attention, particularly his comments on crypto.

In his address, Gensler reiterated that the SEC’s actions against Coinbase, Ripple, and Binance were aimed at protecting investors. However, his closing remarks—thanking colleagues for their collaboration—have sparked speculation that he may be preparing to submit his resignation soon.

“It’s been a great honor to serve with them, doing the people’s work, and ensuring that our capital markets remain the best in the world,” Gensler said.

Gensler’s term is officially set to end in June 2025. Still, rumors of an early exit are unsurprising, especially given newly elected President Donald Trump’s vow to remove him due to his anti-crypto stance.

Further, the statement resonated strongly with XRP holders, who have borne the impact of the Ripple vs. SEC case since 2020. In response, XRP’s price surged to $0.80—a level it last reached in July 2023, when Judge Analisa Torres ruled that the token was not a security.

Beyond legal developments, XRP’s rally to $0.80 was also fueled by significant whale accumulation. According to Santiment, crypto whales have amassed approximately 3.44 billion tokens over the past two years. This also means that wallets that own at least 1 million XRP hold the highest number of tokens in the last 65 months. 

At the current price, this amounts to $2.75 billion, reflecting substantial buying pressure that has contributed to the altcoin’s upward momentum. Should this continue, then XRP’s price might rally much higher than $0.80. But can it?

XRP Price Prediction: Higher Highs

XRP’s price increase means that the token has now climbed by 45% in the last seven days. This development could also be linked to Robinhood’s decision to list the token. On the daily chart, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) has remained positive. 

The MACD indicator is a trend-following momentum tool that shows the relationship between two moving averages of an asset’s price. With these indicators, traders can gauge the strength of bullish or bearish momentum.

When it is negative, momentum is bearish. But since it is positive, the momentum is bullish. If this remains the case, XRP price might climb to $0.85. However, if crypto whales begin to sell in large numbers, this might not happen. In that scenario, XRP could decline to $0.63.