$XRP faced steady selling across spot and perpetual futures markets from Sept. 23 to Oct. 16. Combined cumulative volume delta, or CVD, fell by nearly $2 billion over that stretch. The move shows sellers were more aggressive than buyers for most of the period, not just during a few brief pullbacks.
Spot and futures selling stacked up
Estimated spot $XRP CVD across centralized exchanges dropped from -$1.9 billion to -$3.2 billion. That added $1.3 billion in net aggressive selling. Binance’s perpetual $XRP CVD also fell, from -$812 million to -$1.5 billion. That was another $688 million decline. Put together, the two readings dropped by $1.988 billion, close enough to the $2 billion mark. The selling pressure was not isolated to one market. Spot and derivatives moved in the same direction, which makes the unwind look broad.
Open interest fell on Binance and Bybit
Open interest also dropped on two major exchanges. On Binance, $XRP open interest fell from 302 million to 228 million $XRP, a 74 million decline, or 24.5%. Bybit saw a larger drop, from 359 million to 258 million $XRP. That is 101 million fewer $XRP, or 28.1%. Across both venues, open interest fell by 175 million $XRP, a 26.5% reduction. Falling open interest alongside negative CVD often points to traders closing long positions. It can also mean the market is shedding excess risk. That may help reduce forced selling later, though it does not promise a quick rebound.
Liquidation clusters lean toward shorts
Liquidation data shows where the pain has been. $XRP logged several long-liquidation spikes above $10 million, with one peak near $17 million. The heatmap also shows a gap between potential liquidations above and below the current price. Two highlighted short-liquidation clusters above the market hold a combined $54.7 million. Two long-liquidation clusters below the market total $14.17 million. The short clusters are about 3.86 times larger. That suggests more trapped positions may sit with short sellers above the current price.
For now, the data paints a market that has been through a heavy selloff and a round of position clearing. Whether that leads to calm or another sharp move is less clear. I think the next few sessions will matter, especially if open interest keeps falling while CVD stays negative.
