Ripple donates $100,000 to California wildfire relief efforts; XRP investors anticipate SEC's opening brief

• XRP ETFs could attract $4.3 billion to $8.4 billion in inflows if approved, noted JP Morgan analysts.
• The SEC is expected to file an opening brief on Wednesday in its appeal against the ruling on its case with Ripple.
• Ripple donated $100,000 in XRP to aid California wildfire relief efforts.
• XRP is eyeing the $2.90 resistance as it aims to rally to a new all-time high.

Ripple (XRP) is up 5% on Tuesday following recent positive developments surrounding its ecosystem and JP Morgan's prediction of over $8 billion in inflows into XRP ETF if it gains approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

XRP's latest developments tilt in favor of the bulls

• In a recent research note, JP Morgan analysts predicted that XRP ETFs could attract between $4.3 billion and $8.4 billion in inflows within six to twelve months of launch if the SEC approves asset managers' filings. While the agency has slowed in considering crypto ETFs outside Bitcoin and Ethereum, the analysts predicted that the incoming Trump administration and a new SEC Chair will "open the door for new opportunity in cryptocurrency innovation."
   
• The agency delayed its decision on Bitwise's filing to convert the Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund (BITW) into a crypto ETF. The fund features XRP, Bitcoin, and Ethereum alongside other crypto assets. An approval would have meant the SEC would likely greenlight XRP ETFs' filings.
   
• According to Ripple's chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty, the firm requested that the SEC postpone the Wednesday deadline to file an opening brief in its appeal against the Ripple vs SEC ruling. The agency rejected the offer and chose to stick with the current schedule. If the SEC does not submit its opening brief today, the initial ruling will automatically remain in effect. However, Alderoty's tone suggests that the agency intends to file the brief before the end of the day.

  On January 20, Gensler’s war on crypto ends at the SEC. We asked the SEC to agree to postpone the filing of their opening brief in their appeal of our victory (current deadline Jan 15) – and they refused. What a waste of time and taxpayer dollars!
  
  Nevertheless, we are confident…

  — Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) January 14, 2025

• Ripple announced in an X post on Tuesday that it has donated $100,000 in XRP through The Giving Block to World Central Kitchen and GiveDirectly to aid in the California wildfire relief efforts. The new donation comes after it donated $50,000 of RLUSD to the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Foundation to support first responders on the California wildfire front lines. These donations are improving Ripple and, by extension, XRP's perception among investors.

XRP eyes $2.90 resistance as it continues its quest for a new all-time high

Ripple's XRP has witnessed $8.06 million in futures liquidations in the past 24 hours, per Coinglass data. The total amount of long liquidations is $2.56 million, while liquidated shorts accounted for $5.51 million.

XRP  crossed above $2.65 for the first time in nearly a month after bouncing off the $2.33 support level — which is strengthened by the 50-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) — and surging above a bullish pennant.

XRP/USDT daily chart

The remittance-based token is approaching the $2.90 resistance level — which marks its highest price in six years — as investors anticipate a rally to a new all-time high in the coming weeks. 

If XRP continues holding the pennant's upper boundary and the $2.33 as key support levels, it could overcome the $2.90 resistance and rally to tackle its all-time high resistance of $3.55.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) and Awesome Oscillator (AO) are above their neutral level, indicating dominant bullish momentum. However, the Stochastic Oscillator (Stoch) is in the overbought region, indicating a correction is imminent.

A daily candlestick close below $1.96 will invalidate the thesis.

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