XRP Sentiment Hits 2-Year High After Rakuten Integration — But the Price Isn't Moving Yet

XRP social media sentiment just reached its second-highest reading in two years, and the catalyst is one of the most substantive real-world adoption stories the token has seen in years. 

Rakuten Wallet — Japan's dominant consumer loyalty platform — went live with full XRP integration in late April 2026, letting its 44 million users convert approximately $23 billion worth of loyalty points into XRP and spend the token across more than 5 million merchant locations via Rakuten Pay.

The market noticed. Santiment's Positive/Negative sentiment ratio for XRP climbed to 3.9 — up roughly 240% from its 1.135 reading on March 29 — pushing into what the analytics firm calls the "FOMO zone." 

Yet despite the noise, XRP price has barely budged, still grinding in a tight consolidation band. The disconnect between crowd excitement and chart reality is the real story here.

Key Takeaways

• XRP's social sentiment ratio hit 3.9 on Santiment's tracker on April 29, 2026 — its second-highest bullish reading in two years, driven entirely by the Rakuten Wallet integration.
• XRP remains trapped between $1.31 support and $1.43–$1.45 resistance, trading roughly 62% below its multi-year high of $3.66 set in July 2025.
• Open Interest dropped 3.47% to ~$860.93 million even as sentiment spiked, signaling leveraged traders are reducing exposure rather than doubling down.

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The Rakuten Catalyst: What Actually Happened

On April 13, 2026, Ripple's senior ecosystem growth manager Tatsuya Kohrogi announced that Rakuten Wallet would integrate XRP fully into its platform — and the rollout went live by the end of the month. 

The scope is genuinely significant: Rakuten operates across 30 countries, its 44 million Rakuten Pay users can now convert 3 trillion accumulated loyalty points (valued at over $23 billion) directly into XRP, trade it in-app, and spend it at merchants via QR-based payments. 

Ripple itself called it "one of the largest retail deployments of XRP as a payment method to date." For a token that has spent years searching for a tangible payment use case beyond speculation, the Rakuten deal is about as concrete as it gets.

Read Also: XRP Price Prediction 12 Months: What to Expect by 2027

Why XRP Price Isn't Following the Sentiment

Here's the uncomfortable math. Approximately 2 billion XRP tokens are held at an average cost basis of $1.40–$1.45, according to Glassnode's cost-basis distribution data. 

That creates a significant supply wall right where the price needs to break through — a band that also aligns with the 50-day EMA, the 100-day SMA, and the upper trendline of an ongoing symmetrical triangle. 

Every time XRP pushes toward $1.44–$1.48, cost-basis holders who are finally near break-even start selling, capping the move.

XRP's recent 18% rally from its local low at $1.27, reached on April 5, stalled at $1.48 — precisely at the upper boundary of the symmetrical triangle that has suppressed price since early February. 

Meanwhile, exchange reserves fell 2.62% to approximately $3.756 billion, which eases potential sell pressure — but that supply reduction has not yet translated into meaningful demand. 

The derivatives market tells the same story of hesitation: Open Interest dropped 3.47% even as sentiment spiked, confirming that leveraged participants are stepping back rather than loading up.

Read Also: ChatGPT XRP Price Prediction for Q2 2026: What to Expect

What Santiment's Data and On-Chain Activity Are Telling Us

Santiment has been consistent in its interpretation: sentiment spikes of this magnitude are contrarian signals as often as they are launchpads. 

The firm cautioned that "these events don't often instantly lead to major price outbreaks — it is usually after the initial wave of euphoria, after FOMO calms down, that the impact of this kind of news sees the bullish outcome." 

The March 19 spike — which preceded a sharp pullback — is the most recent example of the same pattern.

Read Also: XRP Partners with Rakuten Pay: Reach 44 M Users, New Retail Opportunities

That said, there are genuine accumulation signals beneath the surface. Whales picked up over 1 billion XRP in the weeks surrounding the Rakuten announcement. 

A $59 million RLUSD settlement was processed on the XRP Ledger on April 29 at a fee of just $0.000188, demonstrating live institutional use of Ripple's infrastructure. 

Ripple also partnered with K-Bank in South Korea for blockchain payments and is working with Kyobo Life Insurance on tokenized government bond settlements. The adoption story is multi-layered — Rakuten is the loudest piece, not the only one.

Read Also: XRP Short Squeeze Potential: How to Make Profit with Bitrue

Conclusion

The XRP sentiment picture right now is genuinely interesting — not because a high reading automatically means price is about to break out, but because it coincides with real infrastructure being built beneath it. 

Rakuten's deployment is not vaporware; it's a live product touching 44 million users and a $23 billion loyalty point economy. The technical barrier at $1.40–$1.45 is real, the supply wall is documented, and the derivatives market shows caution rather than conviction. 

A break above the $1.40–$1.45 resistance zone could open a path toward a measured target of $2.10 — roughly 50% above current prices. Until that level clears with volume, XRP is in a wait-and-see moment that the chart is expressing honestly, even if the crowd isn't.

Read Also: Guide to XRP for Beginner: How to Buy, Sell, Trade, and Stake on Bitrue

FAQ

What caused XRP's social sentiment to hit a 2-year high?

The Rakuten Wallet integration — which lets 44 million users convert $23 billion in loyalty points into XRP and spend it across 5 million merchants in Japan — drove XRP's Santiment Positive/Negative ratio to 3.9, its second-highest level since early 2024.

What is XRP's current price and key resistance level?

XRP is trading around $1.37–$1.40. The critical resistance zone is $1.40–$1.45, which aligns with the 50-day EMA, 100-day SMA, and the upper trendline of a symmetrical triangle pattern. A confirmed break above that level is needed to target $2.10.

Why isn't XRP's price rising despite the Rakuten news?

Approximately 2 billion XRP tokens sit at a $1.40–$1.45 average cost basis, creating a supply wall. Leveraged traders have reduced exposure (Open Interest down 3.47%), and Santiment notes that sentiment peaks historically precede consolidation rather than immediate rallies.

How far is XRP from its all-time high?

XRP hit a multi-year high of $3.66 in July 2025. At current prices near $1.37–$1.40, the token is approximately 62% below that peak.

Is the Rakuten XRP integration significant for long-term adoption?

Yes. With 44 million active users, $23 billion in redeemable loyalty points, and access to over 5 million merchant locations, Rakuten represents one of the largest consumer-facing XRP deployments ever. Ripple described it as "one of the largest retail deployments of XRP as a payment method to date."

What does Santiment's "FOMO zone" mean for XRP?

When XRP's Positive/Negative ratio exceeds 3.5–4.0, Santiment classifies it as the "FOMO zone" — a historically contrarian signal where crowd enthusiasm peaks before price stabilizes or corrects. It does not mean a crash is imminent, but it does suggest price follow-through may be delayed.

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