XRP Price Rises, But Bitcoin Falls. Why the Crypto Could Dive to $80,000. — Barrons.com
By George GloverXRP and Bitcoin were moving in different directions Wednesday as U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war with China sapped the market's risk appetite. Crypto investors should brace for losses if the uncertainty drags on.XRP, which is used to settle and facilitate transactions on Ripple Labs' digital-payments platform, climbed 2.5% to $2.51 in early trading, according to data from the crypto exchange Kraken. Other so-called altcoins were also rising — Ethereum gained 5%, Solana added 0.5%, and Dogecoin was up 3.2% to just under 27 cents.But Bitcoin, the world's largest token in terms of total market capitalization, slid 1% to $97,695. Its losses likely reflect the fact that institutional investors, who might have some exposure to the token but probably don't hold any other digital assets, still don't know what to make of escalating trade tensions. After Trump hiked taxes on Chinese imports by 10% over the weekend, Beijing hit back with levies of its own.The uncertainty plaguing markets in general could weigh on Bitcoin "as traders derisk their portfolios in anticipation of further trade war developments," OKX Global Chief Commercial Officer Lennix Lai said late Tuesday. He added that market indicators including derivatives positioning and exchange flows signaled that the world's largest crypto could tumble to $80,000 — implying an 18% drop from its current level.Write to George Glover at [email protected] content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.