XRP Trading Volume on Upbit Hits $1.9B in One Hour – What’s Behind the Surge?

South Korean traders recently urge major interest in the XRP market after a surprising $1.94 billion worth of XRP was traded on local exchange Upbit — and it all happened in just one hour. This huge volume increase caught the attention of analysts and the crypto community, leading to speculation about what might be driving the surge.

Unusual XRP Activity on Upbit

According to Coinglass data, the XRP trading volume on Upbit hit $1.94 billion at 2:51 PM UTC on July 8. In comparison, Binance — the world’s largest crypto exchange — saw only $90 million in XRP trading volume during the same period.

Popular XRP community member and game designer Chad Steingraber was one of the first to share this data online. He pointed out the unusual spike and began to investigate further, with other market watchers like Zach Rector and Korean analyst XForceGlobal joining the discussion.

Rector noted that Upbit also saw a net inflow of $720 million in XRP within just one hour — meaning more XRP was being deposited or traded on the exchange than withdrawn. This kind of net inflow usually signals high demand and can be a bullish sign for price action.

Korea’s Strong Connection to XRP

XForceGlobal confirmed that XRP has been a dominant cryptocurrency in Korea for a long time. He revealed that 20% of XRP’s total circulating supply is actively traded in Korea’s spot market, showing how deeply Korean traders are invested in the asset. This means that nearly every crypto investor in Korea likely owns or trades XRP.

Steingraber also shared additional volume spikes later that day. By 3:29 PM UTC, the net inflow had jumped to $1.58 billion, and while it dropped slightly by 5:23 PM, the number remained high at $156.84 million for that hour. This level of trading activity is rare and helped reinforce the idea that something big was happening in the Korean XRP market.

Interestingly, other major exchanges like Binance were seeing outflows during this time, meaning more people were pulling XRP out than putting it in. That contrast highlights just how unique Upbit’s volume spike really was.

What This Could Mean for XRP’s Price

Naturally, people began asking if this massive trading activity could affect the price of XRP. Rector explained a concept called the inflow-to-valuation multiplier — a measure of how much a token’s market cap can grow for every $1 of new capital flowing into it. This multiplier can vary, but Rector mentioned seeing a 235x multiplier earlier in the day.

That means for every $1 flowing into XRP, its market cap could potentially increase by $235. At one point, an $18 million inflow was linked to a $4.27 billion rise in XRP’s market cap.

However, it’s important to understand that net inflows to exchanges don’t always mean more investment in the token. Sometimes, it just shows increased trading activity or movement of funds between wallets and platforms.

For example, using a smaller 25x multiplier, the $1.58 billion inflow could have theoretically boosted XRP’s market cap by $39.5 billion — potentially pushing its price to $2.80. But in reality, XRP’s market cap only rose by $4 billion, and the price peaked at around $2.35 during that time.

Current Price and Market Outlook

After touching $2.35, XRP has since cooled off slightly and is now trading at $2.26, up about 0.23% in the last 24 hours. According to analysts like Rector, the good news is that XRP has now flipped the $2.25 resistance level into support, which is seen as a positive technical sign.

So, while the explosive trading volume hasn’t directly translated into a dramatic price rally yet, XRP appears to be holding strong. The unusual activity on Upbit has added fuel to the idea that South Korean traders remain bullish on XRP, and that could help set the stage for bigger moves in the near future.