XRP, used by Ripple to facilitate cross-border transactions, ended May with signs of indecision. Still, activity on the dominant crypto options exchange, Deribit, suggests that bulls aren’t ready to back down yet.

The payments-focused cryptocurrency formed a “doji” with a long upper shadow in May, a classic sign of indecision in the market, according to charting platform TradingView.

The long upper wick suggests that bulls pushed prices higher to $2.65, but bears stepped in and rejected those levels, driving prices down to near the level seen at the start of the month.

The appearance of the doji suggests the recovery rally from the early April lows near $1.60 has likely run out of steam. Doji candles appearing after uptrends often prompt technical analysts to call for bull exhaustion and a potential turn lower.

Accordingly, last week, some traders purchased the $ 2.40 strike put option expiring on May 30. A put option offers insurance against price drops.

Bullish options open interest

The overall picture remains bullish, with options open interest concentrated in higher-strike calls in a sign of persistent positive sentiment. Open interest refers to the number of active contracts at a given time. A call option gives the purchaser an asymmetric upside exposure to the underlying asset, in this case, XRP, representing a bullish bet.

“XRP open interest on Deribit is steadily increasing, with the highest concentration of strikes clustered on the upside between $2.60 and $3.0+, reflecting a notably bullish sentiment while the spot price currently trades at $2.16,” Luuk Strijers, CEO of Deribit, told CoinDesk.

The chart shows that the $4 call option is the most popular, with a notional open interest of $5.39 million. Calls at the $3 and $3.10 strikes have an open interest (OI) of over $5 million each. Notional open interest refers to the dollar value of the number of active contracts.

“XRP option open interest is split across June and September expiries, with monthly notional volumes approximating $65–$70 million, of which over 95% is traded on Deribit,” Strijers said.

The bullish mood likely stems from XRP’s positioning as a cross-border payments solution and mounting expectations of a spot XRP ETF listing in the U.S. Furthermore, the cryptocurrency is gaining traction as a corporate treasury asset.

Ripple, which uses XRP to facilitate cross-border transactions, recently highlighted its potential to address inefficiencies in SWIFT-based cross-border payments. The B2B cross-border payments market is projected to increase to $50 trillion by 2031, up 58% from $31.6 trillion in 2024.

Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse is amplifying calls for the XRP community to quit viewing their Bitcoin counterparts as the enemy. Garlinghouse railed against viewing cryptocurrencies as a zero-sum game at the XRP Las Vegas 2025 conference, urging collaboration to take on the global banking industry.

Bitcoin Is Not The Enemy, Say Brad Garlinghouse

As proceedings at the XRP Las Vegas conference reached their zenith, Brad Garlinghouse took to the stage to advocate for greater industry collaboration. In his panel discussion, Garlinghouse told attendees that Bitcoin is not the enemy, noting that XRP can also thrive amid Bitcoin’s dominance.

He adds that cryptocurrencies and technology are not a zero-sum game, citing his previous experience as a Silicon Valley executive for over 24 years. He adds that the end goal for XRP and Bitcoin communities is to grow the pie and take on the global banking system.

“The Bitcoin community is not the enemy. They really are not,” said Garlinghouse.

Both communities have previously criticized each other with XRP faithfuls poking holes at Bitcoin for its steep transaction costs and scalability issues. Garlinghouse has also taken swipes at Bitcoin in previous speeches, while Bitcoin maxis have criticized XRP over its decentralization claims.

Prior to XRP Las Vegas, Ripple CTO David Schwartz recently responded to Bitcoin maxis’ decentralization criticism, stating that XRP has no issuer.

Collaboration And Innovation Underscore XRP Las Vegas

The theme of collaboration rang through the XRP Las Vegas conference with successive speakers calling for industry synergy. Tron founder Justin Sun hinted at a potential partnership with Ripple, sharing a photo with Brad Garlinghouse on the last day of the conference.

Let’s cook? @bgarlinghouse pic.twitter.com/oStsiEJljP

— H.E. Justin Sun (@justinsuntron) May 31, 2025

In the days leading up to the conference, Brad Garlinghouse donated the Skull of Satoshi to the Bitcoin community. Described as a peace offering, the move has drawn commendation from both the Bitcoin and XRP communities.

Garlinghouse gave insights into the Hidden Road acquisition and its potential to merge traditional finance with DeFi. He commented on the streak of regulatory wins notched by the industry while acknowledging the resilience of XRP’s community during the legal ordeal with the SEC.

Despite the buzz around the conference, XRP price threatened to fall below $2, forming a head and shoulders pattern.

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Aliyu Pokima

Aliyu Pokima is a seasoned cryptocurrency and emerging technologies journalist with a knack for covering needle-moving stories in the space. Aliyu delivers breaking news stories, regulatory updates, and insightful analysis with depth and precision. When he’s not poring over charts or following leads, Aliyu enjoys playing the bass guitar, lifting weights and running marathons.

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