In 'Search' of a Swell? XRP Prices Rise and Fall Amid Ripple Event

Ripple's XRP cryptocurrency is on the decline at press time.

And though it's a drop that's largely in line with bitcoin and the broader crypto asset class, there are conditions that perhaps make XRP worthy of exploration at present.

For one, XRP has steadily gained altitude from its Sept. 15 low of $0.14, an uptrend that seems most likely to coincide with anticipation for big announcements at Swell, the conference the company launched on Oct. 16 to compete with rival Swift.

A new (possibly annual) event designed to draw attention to its product suite, the conference spotlighted how Ripple is seeking to provide distributed ledger technology that could one day replace Swift, the organizer of the Sibos conference.

The result? Speculators who expected a boost from the visibility were likely not disappointed, though long-term holders might be. While during the conference, prices clocked a 7-week high of $0.30, the ripple-US dollar (XRP/USD) exchange rate is now trading at $0.22.

At time of publication, the cryptocurrency has lost over 11 percent in the last 24 hours.

Big search boost

Stepping back, a look at the historical data adds evidence to the idea the Swell conference may have contributed to the boost.

Google search results, for instance, show a strong correlation between search volumes and XRP price activity.

Interestingly, search volumes for the term "ripple price" bottomed out in mid-September (around the time of its recent lows) and spiked ahead of the Swell event.

The numbers point to close correlation between search volumes and ripple price activity.

The chart shows:

• Search volumes jumped during April-June period when XRP rallied from $0.007 to a record high of $0.458
• XRP's rally in mid-August to a high of $0.3127 was accompanied by a jump in search volumes.
• The pattern was repeated in the run-up to Swell event.

Daily chart

Looking at the daily charts, the broader outlook remains constructive as suggested by the rounding bottom formation and repeated rebound from $0.15 levels.

The chart shows:

• The rising trend line has been breached to the downside.
• The RSI has turned bearish (sloping downwards).
• XRP is flirting with the 50-day moving average level of $0.2162.

View

• A convincing break below the 50-day moving average level of $0.2162 would open doors for $0.1628 (Sep. 22 low).
• Only multiple day-end closes below $0.15 would signal long-term bullish-to-bearish trend change.

Disclosure: CoinDesk is a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which has an ownership stake in Ripple, the developer of the open-source XRP Ledger.

Choppy water image via Shutterstock