Retail Fear Hits BTC, ETH, and XRP: But Analysts Say It’s a Bullish Catalyst

Bitcoin (BTC) and top altcoins, such as Ethereum (ETH) and Ripple (XRP), extended their declines this week amid frantic retail selling.

But historical data suggest that such behavior frequently aligns with upcoming crypto recovery windows.

Retail Traders Are Dumping

According to the latest data shared by Santiment, retail traders may be setting the stage for a potential rebound across BTC, ETH, and XRP. The crypto analytic platform stated that small holders have been steadily offloading their coins, with Bitcoin wallets holding less than 0.01 BTC dumping 0.36% of their supply over the past five days.

A similar trend is visible in Ethereum, where wallets holding under 0.1 ETH have shed 0.90% of their holdings in the past month, while XRP wallets with under 100 tokens have offloaded 1.38% since the start of November. Santiment added that prices often move in the opposite direction of retail behavior, so this makes the wave of panic selling a potentially constructive signal for market recovery.

This aligns with new insights from Glassnode, which show that despite recent retail selling, small investors across all three assets remain largely profitable. The blockchain intelligence firm estimates the average retail cost basis at roughly $92,000 for BTC, $3,000 for ETH, and $2.17 for XRP. These levels translate to profits of about 104%, 43%, and 61%, respectively.

Outlook Remains Uncertain

Even as retail behavior hints at a possible turning point, CryptoRank’s latest update makes it clear that conditions are still strained. After several days of sharp declines, Bitcoin and Ethereum managed a small bounce, with BTC rising 0.6% to $90,785 and ETH up 0.4% to $3,025.

The RSI has fallen into oversold territory, which often brings short-term relief, but the platform warns that this stability may be temporary. Sentiment remains extremely weak, reflected in the Fear and Greed Index dropping to 15, which indicates widespread anxiety among traders.

The total crypto market cap now stands at $3.29 trillion. Adding to the pressure, about $270 million in leveraged positions were liquidated over the past 24 hours as volatile price swings forced traders out. While oversold signals sometimes pave the way for quick rebounds, CryptoRank said that uncertainty is likely to continue. With US economic data on the horizon, market direction may depend heavily on how traders react to upcoming developments.

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