2026-01-21 18:21:55

As the entire market is immersed in the AI hype and Meme coin frenzy, some projects are quietly transforming the financial infrastructure. XPL is one such entity—it aims to address the core pain points of global stablecoin payments.

Imagine over 100 billion USD of USDT circulating across various blockchains daily, but high transaction fees and slow confirmations make cross-chain payments a nightmare. XPL's ambition is to directly solve these issues—zero fees and sub-second transfers. It sounds like a fairy tale, but market behavior tells a different story.

The most interesting contrast is this data set: the price has dropped 7% in 24 hours, yet the ecosystem TVL has surged by 5.66%. This scene is very familiar—panicked retail investors are selling off, while smart money quietly accumulates. Even more exaggerated, whales are making a net profit of 12.7 million USD from short positions. What does this mean? The market's perception of XPL's bottom is wildly inconsistent.

Why is this worth paying attention to? Because whoever controls the stablecoin payment infrastructure will control the next trillion-dollar market. Once USDT can truly achieve zero-cost, instant transfers, the entire cross-border payment industry will be reshuffled, and the path to widespread DeFi adoption will truly open. This is not wishful thinking—DeFi giants like Aave and Maple are already starting to integrate XPL.

But the critical issue is this: in mid-2026, 2.5 billion XPL tokens (a quarter of the total supply) will be unlocked. This means two very different futures—before unlocking, the price could surge 10x; after unlocking, it could be cut in half by 50%. Currently, RSI has rebounded from an oversold 15 to 53, indicating a technical turnaround, and professional community members generally believe XPL is severely undervalued. The problem is, there isn't much time left for decision-making.

XPL4.77%

AAVE4.16%

View Original

This page may contain third-party content, which is provided for information purposes only (not representations/warranties) and should not be considered as an endorsement of its views by Gate, nor as financial or professional advice. See Disclaimer for details.

12 Likes

Reward
12
4
Repost
Share

Comment

0/400

RugpullAlertOfficer

· 5h ago

Prices drop, retail investors scream; TVL rises, smart money laughs. The contrast is incredible... But isn't the 2.5 billion tokens unlocking in 2026 really a ticking time bomb?

View OriginalReply0

VCsSuckMyLiquidity

· 5h ago

Prices drop as retail investors sell off, TVL rises as smart money sweeps in. I’m very familiar with this move haha. Really, if the whale arbitrage of $12.7 million isn’t enough to illustrate the point, then the market’s perception gap is just ridiculous. That 2.5 billion tokens unlock in mid-2026... that’s the real gamble. Whether it’s ten times or a complete cut in half depends entirely on this wave. By the way, Aave has integrated it, so the infrastructure side of things does have some substance. But honestly, I’m a bit wary of XPL at this price... After all, a sharp rise before unlock usually means the real big trap comes after the unlock. Zero-fee instant transfers sound great, but the key is whether they can truly energize the USDT ecosystem. RSI is only at 53, the rebound isn’t enough. I’m still watching. Retail investors’ sell-off is so fierce, but it feels like there’s something they’re not telling us... Check the community? When will the professional players start bottoming out? That might be more insightful.

View OriginalReply0

SandwichVictim

· 5h ago

Retail investors sell off chips, whales buy in. This routine is getting boring haha The 2.5 billion tokens unlocked in 2026 will be the real bomb. Whoever takes the bait will be doomed then Zero fees sound great, but it's hard to believe it can really be achieved However, the increase in TVL is indeed interesting, indicating that someone is gambling

View OriginalReply0

TokenDustCollector

· 6h ago

Retail investors scream and sell off, but whales are eating up the meat. This spread will have to be made up sooner or later. --- Zero fees sound too perfect, could it just be a gimmick? --- Unlocking those 2.5 billion tokens in 2026... Do they really dare to push this? --- Aave has already adopted? Then it's definitely not just air. --- RSI is only 53 and they say it's turning strong? Still early, right? --- This is a gamble, betting whether institutional confidence can last until the unlock. --- Price drops but TVL rises, the smart money's intuition is indeed sharp. --- Trillions market size, I've heard it a thousand times. What does XPL have to compete with? --- Why does no one mention liquidity risk? Who will absorb the sell-off during unlock? --- Compared to USDT infrastructure, this ambition is really not small. --- The large difference in bottom cognition means someone will get liquidated. Don't know who it is.

View OriginalReply0