XRP, investor sentiment 'chilly' despite 'jackpot' outlook for 2030..."They said it would go to $28, but the whales have cooled off"

▲ XRP

The forecast of XRP reaching $28 by 2030 is once again gaining attention, but worsening investor sentiment combined with a slowdown in whale accumulation has put a brake on long-term bullish arguments.

According to CCN on May 26 (local time), the possibility of XRP reaching $28 by 2030 has come under scrutiny again after Santiment reported a sharp drop in investor sentiment and a slowdown in whale accumulation. While some banks continue to test Ripple's blockchain infrastructure, debate is growing over whether institutional adoption can translate into demand for XRP itself.

Santiment stated that XRP crowd sentiment has once again turned sharply negative. The ratio of positive to negative comments fell to about 1.1 bullish comments for every 1 bearish comment. Santiment explained, "When traders become overly fearful across social media, many weak hands have already sold, and selling pressure decreases, creating conditions for a rebound." However, Santiment warned that when the positive/negative sentiment ratio climbs deep into the FOMO zone, it means traders are overly confident and buying aggressively, and excessive optimism has historically preceded local tops.

In long-term forecasts, Standard Chartered was mentioned as the strongest bull. Standard Chartered predicted that XRP could reach approximately $7 by the end of 2027 and rise to $28 by 2030. However, in its February report, the company lowered its XRP target price for the end of 2026 from the previous $8 to $2.80.

David Schwartz, former CTO of Ripple, drew a line against extreme price predictions circulating in the XRP community in January. When asked on X (formerly Twitter) if XRP could reach around $100, Schwartz stated, "I'm not comfortable saying that," and added, "I don't think it's highly likely, but there was a time I didn't think it was highly likely XRP would reach $0.25 either."

CCN also presented evaluations from several models regarding whether XRP could reach over $28 by 2030. One model viewed the key as whether institutional adoption of Ripple's infrastructure actually translates into sustained demand for XRP tokens, and analyzed that the ability to utilize the ledger without holding a large amount of XRP creates a disparity between network growth and token value. It also assessed that if its legal status becomes clearer in the US and large-scale ETF funds flow in, XRP could re-enter a multi-year growth cycle.

Other models offered more cautious evaluations. They pointed out that reaching $28 would bring XRP's market capitalization close to the largest asset classes in financial history, requiring a simultaneous confluence of regulatory victories, ETF demand, actual institutional token usage, and a broader cryptocurrency bull market. CCN reported that deteriorating investor sentiment and weakening whale activity are acting as signs that conviction has cooled since past surges, and the $28 forecast remains a long-term scenario requiring multiple conditions to be met simultaneously.

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