XRP ETFs Go From Zero to $86.5M at Goldman Sachs in Just One Quarter
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Key Takeaways
Goldman Sachs disclosed $86.5 million across five spot XRP ETFs in Q2 2026, after reporting no XRP ETF exposure at the end of Q1.
Trader CW says XRP whale futures accounts are increasingly positioned long, but smart-money indicators on Binance and Bybit remain bearish.
A new Coinbase order-book snapshot shows large buy and sell walls around XRP’s current price, which CW believes are keeping the token contained rather than preparing for an immediate breakout.
XRP’s institutional setup is getting more interesting, but the market is sending conflicting signals about whether another major rally is ready to begin.
Goldman Sachs reported $86.5 million of exposure across five spot XRP ETFs as of June 30, according to its latest Form 13F. The bank held roughly $25.8 million in Bitwise’s XRP ETF and $25.4 million in Franklin Templeton’s XRPZ, as well as positions in Canary Capital, Grayscale, and 21Shares products.
The filing marks a reversal from Q1, when Goldman had exited the XRP ETF positions it held at the end of 2025. Its previous exposure was worth approximately $153.8 million.
GOLDMAN SACHS: $113M+ XRP ETF EXPOSURE Per Q2 2026 13F filing Goldman Sachs Group Inc disclosed positions across 5 separate spot XRP ETFs:
Reported value at filing: $86.5M Mark-to-market today: $113.7M
A 13F filing does not reveal why Goldman held the ETFs or whether the positions represent a directional bet on XRP. Banks can hold securities for client activity, hedging, market-making, and investment purposes. But the filing confirms renewed exposure at the end of Q2 as broader institutional ownership of XRP ETFs increased.
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Derivatives positioning is also leaning increasingly toward the upside.
Crypto trader CW (@CW8900) pointed to XRP futures data showing whale-position long/short ratios of 2.18 on Binance and as high as 23.38 on OKX in one snapshot.
XRP whales’ long positions are continuously increasing. | Source: @CW8900 on X.
That means long exposure substantially exceeded short exposure within those whale-position categories.
CW argued that “preparations for the XRP rally are proceeding steadily,” pointing to growing whale longs.
But one part of the market has yet to confirm that view.
Binance smart-money sentiment improved from “extremely bearish” to “bearish” between the shared snapshots, but it had not turned bullish. Bybit smart-money sentiment remained extremely bearish.
Taker activity was similarly mixed. The latest 24-hour snapshot showed roughly $3.94 billion in long-side volume versus $4.08 billion in short-side volume, leaving sellers with a narrow 50.86% advantage.
Whales may be adding longs, but the futures market is not uniformly positioned for a breakout.
Coinbase Whales Appear to Be Boxing XRP In
CW’s latest order-book analysis adds another piece to that setup.
With XRP trading around $1.53 on Aug. 25, the supplied chart shows sizeable Coinbase liquidity sitting on both sides of the market.
Coinbase $XRP whales are currently blocking the rise.
At the same time, they are busy preparing something.
A sell wall exsiting up to $32 was formed this month. And the most of this sell wall was created by Coinbase whales.
Visible sell liquidity included roughly $1.69 million around $1.5421, with larger walls further above, including approximately $2.08 million near $1.70, $3.07 million around $1.75, and $8.87 million near $2.25.
Below the price, the same snapshot showed approximately $3.23 million of buy liquidity around $1.50.
CW interprets the structure as Coinbase whales deliberately keeping XRP inside a range.
“They do not want a big rise, nor do they want a drop. They are simply holding the price.”
That conclusion is an interpretation of the order book, rather than proof of coordinated price control.
Large orders can slow price movement because buyers or sellers must absorb them before the price moves through a level. But orders can also be canceled, shifted, or replenished, and an order book snapshot cannot reveal the intentions of the wallets behind them.
The more defensible conclusion is that XRP currently faces substantial liquidity on both sides of its price. The buy wall around $1.50 could provide short-term support, while the sell liquidity immediately above $1.54 and toward $1.70 could make an upside breakout harder.
What Would XRP Need to Reach $5?
Goldman’s ETF exposure and whale positioning add support to the bullish case, but $5 remains far beyond the current trading range.
From approximately $1.53, XRP would need to rise about 227%. With roughly 62.7 billion XRP circulating, a $5 price would imply a circulating market capitalization of approximately $314 billion.
According to CW, high-leverage short positions on $XRP face key resistance up to $1.564. If the price breaks above this level, overhead short resistance essentially vanishes.
However, traders should note that total liquidation volume remains relatively small right now due to lower high-leverage positioning across the futures market.
Resistance for high-leverage short positions on $XRP exists up to $1.564.
If this level is broken, the resistance for short positions will disappear.
The size of positions available for liquidation is small. Currently, there are small high-leverage positions in the futures… pic.twitter.com/mLg584Jkei
Recent ETF demand provides one potential source of spot buying. US XRP ETFs attracted around $39.8 million during Aug. 17–21, their strongest week since May, taking cumulative inflows to roughly $1.55 billion.
The immediate hurdle is much closer than $5.
If XRP can absorb the Coinbase sell-side liquidity above its current price while whale longs continue to increase and smart-money positioning turns positive, the derivatives and spot signals would begin to point in the same direction.
For now, they do not. Goldman has returned to XRP ETFs, and whale accounts are leaning long, but the order book shows why XRP is still struggling to turn that positioning into a clean breakout.
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Dr. Guneet Kaur is a senior editor at CCN.com and a Science Fellow at Exponential Science. She is a fintech and blockchain expert with extensive experience in digital finance education, blockchain ecosystems, and cryptocurrency markets. She has worked with global media such as Cointelegraph, as well as education and blockchain platforms, to design and lead strategic content and learning initiatives. As an educator and assessor for top-tier executive programs, she bridges real-world fintech trends with academic insight.
Dr. Kaur is also a published researcher and peer reviewer across fintech and data science journals, including Financial Innovation Journal and International Journal of Big Data Intelligence and Applications. Her work spans data-driven analysis, Web3 innovation, and technical content development. With a strong foundation in both industry and academia, she translates complex financial technologies into practical applications, empowering learners, professionals, and institutions across the rapidly evolving digital finance landscape.
