Headline: XRP Leads Crypto Pullback as Leverage Unwinds — $1.40 Becomes Make-or-Break Level Crypto markets are taking a breather after a big week: Bitcoin briefly cracked $80,000 on Tuesday before cooling toward the $77,000–$78,000 zone on Wednesday. Traders are eyeing tonight’s core PCE inflation print and Nvidia earnings — two major catalysts that could set the tone into the Jackson Hole symposium. Not every token is benefiting equally from this month’s improved risk appetite. XRP is shedding ground faster than most: it’s down about 6.23% in the past 24 hours to roughly $1.38, the weakest performer among the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap (CoinMarketCap). That’s a sharp intraday reversal for a token that has been one of the month’s strongest performers — XRP is still up 35.55% over the past seven days, trailing only Hyperliquid (38.65%) among top-ten coins and far outpacing Bitcoin, Ethereum and other majors. Why the pullback? The recent rally was exceptionally rapid. XRP surged from roughly $1.00 on Aug. 18 to an intraday high near $1.69 just four days later, even briefly touching the $1.70 mark. Such a swift move likely left leveraged positions exposed, and Bitcoin’s retreat from $80k began to drag altcoins down. One encouraging datapoint: XRP-linked ETFs have recorded nine consecutive days of net inflows, suggesting institutional buying remains intact and that the move lower may be a leverage-driven correction rather than a wholesale exit by institutions. Technical snapshot - Daily action: XRP opened at $1.4344, hit a high of $1.4513, and is trading around $1.3790 — down about 3.86% on the current daily candle. - Key level: Price has returned to the $1.40 zone that flipped from resistance to support during last week’s breakout — the same level where XRP reclaimed its 200-day exponential moving average. Whether $1.40 holds will be critical: a successful hold would read as a healthy cooldown; a daily close below it could invite deeper selling toward the lower support band formed after August’s breakout. - Indicators: RSI sits at 66.7 — still bullish but approaching the 70 profit-taking threshold. ADX is strong at 44.1, indicating the trend has momentum, with DI+ still above DI- (a bullish tilt). Offsetting that, the 50-day EMA remains below the 200-day EMA, a structural reminder of the broader downtrend that persisted through much of the year. Macro and market context Bitcoin’s ability to maintain the $77k–$78k area will matter for altcoins across the board, including XRP. Tonight’s PCE inflation reading and Nvidia earnings are the next scheduled events likely to swing sentiment; either print could amplify the current unwind or help stabilize markets. Bottom line: This looks like a leverage-led pullback inside a bigger, rapid short-term rally. Holding $1.40 would keep the seven-day gains intact as a normal cooldown. A daily close beneath that level would increase the odds of a deeper retracement. Disclaimer: This article is informational and not financial advice. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news