Ripple CEO takes the moral high ground around politics, while XRP struggles to break out

• XRP is trading at $0.247 after a failed attempt to climb above $0.26.
• Momentum seems to be shifting in favor of the bears again, at least in the short-term.

Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple CEO, has recently stated that tech companies have an obligation to solve societal problems. Garlinghouse was responding to comments made by Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, who caused a massive wave of criticism due to his remarks about not engaging in social and political issues. In a recent interview with CNBC, Garlinghouse stated: 

We think about our mission as enabling an internet of value, but we seek positive outcomes for society, adding, The sad reality is — and I say this as a long-time veteran of Silicon Valley — some of these (societal) problems are, at a minimum, exacerbated by the tech platforms themselves.

XRP fails to crack a crucial resistance level

XRP is quickly losing market dominance after hitting a high of 3.08% on October 20. Currently, the digital asset has around 2.89% dominance, having lost approximately $700 million in market capitalization over the past four days. It’s unclear whether Garlinghouse’s comments will have any direct impact on the price of XRP. 

On the daily chart, the digital asset established an ascending triangle pattern. The price pierced through the upper resistance level at $0.26 on October 22 but failed to close above it. Bulls re-attempted to crack this point two more times on October 23 and 26.

XRP/USD daily chart

The last rejection, less than 24 hours ago, has sent the price of XRP down to $0.245, re-testing the lower trendline of the pattern, which coincides with the 50-SMA. The MACD is losing some strength, and it’s on the verge of a bearish cross. Failure to hold $0.247 can drive the price of XRP down to $0.22. 

Thankfully for the bulls, it seems that the lower boundary of the ascending triangle at $0.247 is further supported by the 50-SMA on the daily chart. Despite the decline in the strength of the MACD, it remains bullish and will also help with the defense of $0.247. 

A successful bounce from $0.247 can drive the price of XRP towards the upper trendline at $0.26, which coincides with the 100-SMA. A breakout above this point can easily lead the digital asset to $0.30. 

XRP Holders Distribution Chart

Looking at the Holders Distribution chart provided by Santiment, it is noticed a notable growth in the number of whales holding between 1,000,000 – 10,000,000 coins, from 1336 holders on October 17 to 1345 now. More importantly, the number of whales with at least 10,000,000 coins or more has also increased by 6 in the past nine days. 

The increase of XRP whales could be considered a signal of bullish pressure, which could support a bounce from the $0.247 area.