Leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance has made the decision to delist its XRPUP and XRPDOWN leveraged tokens as of July 25 at 6 am UTC.
This move comes in the wake of lawsuits filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against both Binance and Ripple Labs regarding the alleged sale of unregistered securities.
According to Binance’s announcement, the leveraged tokens offering users exposure to long or short positions on XRP will no longer be available on the platform after the specified date.
Users are advised to redeem their tokens using the wallet function before the delisting takes effect.
Binance has outlined that if users still hold these leveraged tokens after delisting, the exchange will convert them into Tether’s USDT stablecoin based on their net asset value at the time of delisting.
Leveraged tokens enable traders to amplify their exposure to specific cryptocurrencies like XRP. These tokens adjust their leverage in real-time using a sophisticated algorithm, reflecting the price movements of the underlying cryptocurrency.
As XRP’s value fluctuates, the associated leveraged token magnifies those fluctuations. For example, a 3x long leveraged token tied to XRP aims to replicate three times the daily percentage change in XRP’s price.
Therefore, a 1% rise in XRP should ideally result in a 3% surge in the token, and vice versa for a decline.
The delisting of XRP leveraged tokens coincides with ongoing lawsuits faced by both Binance and Ripple. The SEC has accused Ripple, a significant player in the XRP space, of violating securities laws, while Binance faces separate allegations of similar violations.
Notably, large holders of XRP, commonly referred to as whales, have reportedly accumulated a substantial amount of the cryptocurrency since February.
These whales have reportedly amassed around 1.1 billion XRP tokens, equivalent to approximately $570 million. Recent price dips have provided an opportunity for these whales, holding between 10 million and 100 million XRP tokens, to increase their holdings.
Observations of daily active addresses for XRP suggest a pattern that could potentially indicate an upcoming price pump.
Similar patterns in the past have been associated with notable price surges, pointing to the possibility of significant market movement for the native token of the XRP Ledger.
