XRP tokens linked to Ripple have sparked a renewed wave of positive discussions on social media, a trend that has often preceded contrarian price movements. The token's sentiment ratio on social media spiked to 3.9 on April 29, the highest level since March 19, when a similar surge was followed by a sharp decline. This spike into the 'FOMO zone' indicates overwhelmingly positive crowd sentiment, which Santiment views as a contrarian signal. Historically, when social media chatter reaches such levels, the token tends to consolidate or correct in the following days as demand from buyers driving the social wave dries up.
The recent integration of XRP with Rakuten Pay, allowing users to convert points into XRP, has contributed to the asset's second-highest bullish sentiment on social media in the past two years. This integration enables an estimated 44 million Rakuten users to spend XRP at over 5 million merchant locations, trade it within the Rakuten Pay app, and convert their Rakuten points directly into XRP. Despite the social media frenzy, XRP traded at $1.37 on Thursday, down 2.1% over 24 hours and 3.7% on the week. Santiment data also highlighted a 'buy the dip' opportunity on March 29, when XRP sentiment hit the FUD zone, and the token bounced shortly after.
The pattern in 2026 has been consistent, with crowd sentiment leading price movements by 24 to 72 hours in either direction, and crowd extremes often marking reversals rather than continuations. XRP has primarily traded between $1.37 and $1.60 throughout April, and a clean break of either side will determine whether the Rakuten integration marks the start of a sustained re-rating or another fleeting headline.