After a long and bitter courtroom battle, Ripple has scored a decisive victory against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), igniting a wave of optimism across the XRP community. The SEC’s decision to quietly drop its case appears to have rejuvenated investor sentiment, with a majority of traders now placing bullish bets on XRP. However, despite growing excitement and whale accumulation, the price remains in a tight consolidation phase—just shy of the $2.25 resistance level.

The turning point came when Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer, Stuart Alderoty, posted a short yet pointed video on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), marking the SEC’s retreat as a critical moment in the fight for regulatory clarity. In his statement, Alderoty criticized the SEC’s enforcement-first approach and underscored the agency’s failure to provide clear rules for crypto companies. The viral clip quickly made rounds among the crypto community, reaffirming what many XRP holders saw as long-overdue justice.

The ripple effects—no pun intended—were felt almost immediately across crypto trading platforms. On Binance, over 71% of futures traders are now taking long positions on XRP, signaling a sharp tilt in sentiment. According to market analyst Ali Martinez, the Long/Short Ratio surged to 2.51 as of May 3rd, highlighting the growing divide between bullish and bearish traders. This type of imbalance often suggests traders are gearing up for a significant move.

Backing up this trend is data from Glassnode, which shows whale addresses holding 10,000 XRP or more have hit an all-time high, now exceeding 300,000 wallets. Interestingly, this accumulation has continued even during periods of price stagnation, indicating that large holders are positioning themselves ahead of what they believe could be a breakout rally.

However, the bullish narrative is not without its challenges. Despite the legal victory and strong sentiment metrics, XRP’s price action remains subdued. As of this writing, XRP is trading around $2.18, showing minimal volatility over the past 24 hours. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) sits near 50.94, placing it in neutral territory. This suggests the token is neither overbought nor oversold, reflecting the current phase of market indecision.

Volume indicators also reveal mixed signals. The On-Balance Volume (OBV) indicator has yet to reflect the kind of buying surge that would typically accompany a breakout. This divergence—between positive sentiment and lackluster trading volume—suggests that the market is still waiting for broader participation before XRP can make a decisive move.

Technically, the next major hurdle lies at the $2.25 resistance level. A clean break above this zone, accompanied by strong volume and momentum, could validate the bullish bias and open the door for further gains. Until then, XRP is likely to remain trapped in a consolidation range as traders look for confirmation before piling in.

From a macro perspective, Ripple’s legal victory could mark the beginning of a new chapter—not just for XRP, but for the wider crypto industry. The SEC’s dropped appeal is being interpreted by many legal observers as a tacit admission of regulatory overreach. This could pave the way for more favorable treatment of digital assets under U.S. law, potentially removing a significant overhang from XRP’s valuation.

Still, for price action to align with sentiment, the market needs more than just legal wins. Sustained accumulation, higher volume, and technical breakouts must work in tandem to shift XRP out of its current sideways phase. Until then, the optimism may remain just that—optimism.

In conclusion, while Ripple’s courtroom triumph has injected fresh energy into the XRP market, traders and investors will need to see more than just sentiment and accumulation. As XRP hovers just below its next key resistance, all eyes remain on whether bullish conviction can finally translate into price momentum.