XRP gained 3.5% on September 22 to trade at $1.54, pushing above its 200-day EMA as whales add large long positions on Hyperliquid. The rally comes as the Ripple-backed Fairshake PAC launches a $30 million campaign against former Senator Sherrod Brown following the CLARITY Act's collapse in the Senate, while Europe's new digital euro settlement rail keeps XRP Ledger technology in the conversation.
Ripple-Backed PAC Targets Sherrod Brown After CLARITY Act Collapse
Fairshake, the largest political action committee in the crypto industry and backed by firms including XRP issuer Ripple and Coinbase, has launched a $30 million advertising campaign against former Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, according to a report by The New York Times. The report describes the budget as Fairshake's most aggressive move yet ahead of the November mid-term elections, one that could sway the Ohio Senate race.
Former Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett noted that a Brown win could let him reclaim seniority in the Senate and potentially become the new Chair of the Senate Banking Committee. The campaign follows the collapse of the CLARITY Act, which received only 49 of the 60 votes required to invoke cloture. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has since blamed Democrat Senators for the bill's failure.
Whales Open $17M in Long Positions as Hyperliquid Open Interest Soars
Data from CoinGlass shows whales on Hyperliquid opened $16.91 million worth of long positions on XRP between September 21 and September 22. The positioning has pushed XRP open interest on the exchange to $298.22 million, the highest reading since January 2026.
XRP has broken out of a bull flag pattern, with price pushing above resistance at $1.52, now tested as support. If the support holds, XRP could target the psychological resistance at $1.60. A close below support at $1.39 could send XRP toward the mid-September lows near $1.28.
Europe's Digital Euro Rail Puts XRP Ledger Technology in Focus
ECB President Christine Lagarde announced that the central bank launched Pontes on Monday, September 21, a system letting EU banks settle transactions with each other using a digital euro and blockchain technology. According to Lagarde: "It's the beginning, not the finish", with a full digital euro pilot planned for around mid-2027.
Pontes itself does not run on XRP, but Axology, a company that built a private network using open-source XRP Ledger code, uses the system to settle tokenized securities and bonds against central bank euros. Ripple banking partners Société Générale and DZ Bank are also active in the space. Crypto analyst Dom Kwok reignited attention around his long-standing $1,000 XRP price target this week, though the figure remains his own prediction and neither Ripple nor the ECB has linked Pontes to any specific price target.
Sources: CoinGape, Coinpedia Fintech News
Trading involves risk.
Risk Disclaimer
