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February 9, 2026

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The post Mega Whales Turned Bearish: Is $1.00 the Real Risk Level for XRP price? appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News

XRP price is hovering around $1.43, barely holding above the $1.41 support, and the market tone isn’t exactly comforting. Just days ago on the weekly chart, XRP briefly slid to $1.10 which was its lowest level in several months, it barely stopped just above the psychologically loaded $1.00 mark. 

That bounce looked encouraging on the surface. Underneath, not so much. Because while price recovered, confidence didn’t.

Longer-term holders still remain shaky, and the structure around the XRP price chart suggests the rebound may have been more mechanical than conviction-driven. This isn’t panic yet, but it’s fragile on the inside.

Weekly Rebound Hides Deeper Structural Weakness Underneath

One thing investors and traders must know to be clear. That a dip to $1.10 and a spike back isn’t meaningless, at least for now. Because it means that buyers did step in, and the $1.00-$1.10 zone still commands respect from bulls. But here’s the problem, in the short-term it looks like a spike but on the long-term chart the recovery didn’t flinch XRP price meaningfully towards the broader trend.

From a technical standpoint, XRP/USD is still skating dangerously close to failure. If $1.41 gives way, price action opens a clean path back toward $1.10. And if that level fails to hold on a retest, the downside narrative intensifies fast.

So yes, support exists. But it’s being tested by hesitation, not confidence. And, if it returns back the $1.00 consolidation could start.

Derivatives Data Leans Heavily Toward More Downside

Now for the uncomfortable part. Derivatives positioning also doesn’t agree with the idea of a stable base forming.

Liquidation data shows roughly $390 million stacked on the short side compared with just over $190 million in long exposure. That imbalance matters. It suggests traders are leaning into weakness, not preparing for a sustained rebound.

In other words, the futures market isn’t buying the bounce. It’s betting against it.

And if XRP price drifts lower again, that heavy short positioning could amplify volatility rather than cushion it. This is why any XRP price prediction right now carries asymmetric risk.

Supply Distribution Shows Whales Quietly Heading for Exits

Meanwhile, on-chain behavior isn’t offering much comfort either. Per Santiment data, the metric Supply distribution by balance tells a clear story. Addresses holding between 10 million and 100 million XRP have been steadily selling since early February, which is responsible for the crash in XRP. More concerning, now wallets in the 100 million to 1 billion XRP range have turned bearish in the last 24 hours with metric showing a downside u-curve.

That shift matters. Larger holders don’t usually rush. When they start leaning toward distribution, it often precedes deeper price tests.

If selling pressure continues and XRP revisits $1.00, the risk isn’t just a clean breakdown. Cascading liquidations could follow, reinforcing bearish momentum across both spot and derivatives markets.

For now, XRP price remains above support. But the longer it lingers without demand stepping in, the thinner that safety net becomes.

Apollo Global Management is close to finalising a roughly $3.4 billion loan to an investment vehicle that plans to purchase Nvidia chips and lease them to Elon Musk-led artificial intelligence company xAI, according to a report by The Information citing a person familiar with the matter.

The deal could be completed as soon as this week, with Valor Equity Partners, a longtime backer of Musk’s ventures, arranging the transaction.

The financing reflects how Wall Street is increasingly structuring bespoke vehicles to fund the explosive demand for AI compute infrastructure, as companies race to secure scarce high-performance chips and data centre capacity.

Financing model reshapes AI infrastructure funding

Leasing chips and compute infrastructure has emerged as a crucial mechanism for AI companies seeking to scale rapidly without tying up capital in costly hardware purchases.

For xAI, the model offers a way to expand its computing footprint while continuing to invest heavily in talent, software and data centres.

If completed, the transaction would mark Apollo’s second major investment in a chip-leasing vehicle tied to xAI.

In November, Apollo-backed funds provided a similar $3.5 billion loan.

Over the weekend, Apollo also said its funds led $3.5 billion in financing for a roughly $5.4 billion data-centre compute deal arranged by Valor, structured as a triple-net lease and backed by Nvidia as an anchor investor.

Apollo estimates that global data centre infrastructure will require several trillion dollars of investment over the next decade, driven by accelerating demand for AI workloads.

Since 2022, Apollo-managed funds and affiliates have deployed more than $40 billion into next-generation infrastructure spanning compute capacity, digital platforms and renewable energy.

Musk’s broader AI and space strategy

The financing discussions come shortly after Musk announced that SpaceX had acquired xAI in a deal valuing the rocket company at $1 trillion and the AI firm at $250 billion.

Musk has said the rationale behind combining the two entities is partly to advance the development of orbital data centres, which could use space-based infrastructure to support next-generation AI computing.

Big technology companies are expected to spend more than $600 billion this year on advanced chips and data centres, underscoring the scale of capital required to compete in the AI race.

xAI has tapped Wall Street, sovereign investors and venture capital firms for billions of dollars over the past year.

It recently announced a $20 billion investment in Mississippi and raised another $20 billion in equity from investors, including Nvidia, Valor and the Qatar Investment Authority.

As xAI continues to burn cash on infrastructure and talent, analysts expect the company to rely increasingly on special purpose vehicles and structured financing to sustain its rapid expansion.

The post Apollo Global nears $3.4B loan to lease Nvidia chips to Elon Musk’s xAI: report appeared first on Invezz