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It is Wednesday, Jan. 28, and the crypto market seems to have stabilized, but the charts say "not so fast."
XRP just posted a $0 liquidation anomaly that short sellers will not forget, Bitcoin’s silent 429% run is being remembered at the worst possible moment, and Shiba Inu lines up for a February that may cement the "legendary" status for this month if price history holds.
TL;DR
- XRP bulls dodge liquidation entirely during short wipeout as price spikes 1.45%.
- Bitcoin outperformed everything since 2022; 429% surge beats even so-hyped silver and gold.
- SHIB’s February win rate looks locked in, with just one red candle in five years.
XRP chart prints rare $0, and it is not a glitch
Something unusual just hit the XRP derivatives scene, to say the least, as bulls liquidated for exactly $0 in the last hour. That's right: zero.
According to CoinGlass data, while $140,504 in XRP short positions got "rekt" in just one hour, long positions came through untouched. The total liquidated amount stood at $140,504, and it is all shorts. With XRP only moving +1.45% in that same hour, the essence of this event is unambiguous — somebody was on the wrong side of a very overleveraged bet.
This anomaly is not trivial in the current market environment. XRP, as any other cryptocurrency to be honest, is notoriously hostile to bulls in liquidation flows. Historically, long chasers get punished far more often.
But this time, it flipped. A glance at the 12-hour and 24-hour liquidation spread tells more: $1.65 million in short-side wreckage vs. $1.31 million long. It is not huge in dollar terms, but the direction is rare.
On the one-minute chart, the impulse that triggered the wipeout is represented by a mid-session breakout near $1.914, which sent the price accelerating into $1.93 before consolidating. It was not a news-driven spike but punishment for front-running downside on thin liquidity. And given the $0 bull loss, it is likely a sign of better capital control from long-side XRP whales.
Forgotten 429% Bitcoin rally resurfaces
While Bitcoin trades are stuck under $89,000 and everyone awaits FOMC rhetoric, a chart from Bloomberg’s Eric Balchunas is cheering the space up; since late 2022 — just before the BlackRock ETF filing — BTC is up 429%.
That figure is not small, despite all the disappointment crypto enthusiasts have right now. It crushes gold's +177%, silver's +351%, and even the Nasdaq proxy QQQ with its +135% gain.
Yes, crypto was "in a coma" for much of late 2025, but Bitcoin’s two-year performance dwarfs traditional safe havens. And that is the point Balchunas makes: the "institutionalization" rally already happened, now the price is letting fundamentals catch up.
This is not a popular view. As was said, many in the market feel left behind by BTC’s slow January and outflows from ETFs. But zoom out, and suddenly the math favors the crypto; Bitcoin priced the future in 2023-2024, while legacy markets chased 2025’s soft landing.
And now? BTC holds higher ground.
The relative strength argument becomes even stronger when factoring in that Bitcoin delivered 429% over 25 months, with 50% fewer drawdowns than in previous cycles — a sign of a maturing market structure.
At the same time, its correlation to tech stocks broke down in late 2025, reinforcing its behavior as an independent asset class rather than a speculative tech proxy.
Some speculate that this historic outperformance sets up a “lag rotation” back into Bitcoin once macro events settle — especially post-FOMC and post-budget. If real rates soften, Bitcoin’s multiyear hedge narrative could easily reassert dominance once again.
This legendary Shiba Inu (SHIB) February streak is not to miss in 2026
Popular meme coin Shiba Inu (SHIB), the biggest of its kind on Ethereum, by the way, is sneaking into February with numbers that the price history likes.
Over the last five years, as per CryptoRank, SHIB has posted positive February returns four times — with the only red month in 2025 at -26.1%. The average return for February sits at +9.26%, with the median at +10.9%.
Compare that to Dogecoin, SHIB’s closest meme rival. DOGE shows heavier red stats across February historically, with more distribution to the downside. While DOGE has the longer data set, SHIB’s recent streak looks statistically cleaner, and that is what’s driving all the "win streak" buzz.
The Shiba Inu coin also enters February 2026 after a +13.1% January. That sets up a momentum carryover, especially as those seeking for higher beta lean into meme coin rotations post-tax season and before altcoin breakouts.
If the rally sustains, SHIB’s status as Ethereum’s top meme asset may gain permanence — and the “legendary” February tag becomes more than a meme.
Crypto price prediction: BTC, XRP and SHIB targets ahead of FOMC
The crypto market remains suspended in macro anticipation. Today's FOMC statement at 2:00 p.m. ET is the main event. The rate pause is already priced in, but the tone will determine the market's direction. If Powell acts more hawkish, it could make people worried. But if he acts more dovish, it could boost the value of the majors.
XRP: Immediate support sits at $1.89, with the first upside resistance at $2 — more psychological than technical threshold.
Shiba Inu (SHIB): Short-term price magnet is $0.00001018, coinciding with 200-day MA. If cleared, it opens a path to $0.000013 range, matching October 2023 peaks.
Bitcoin (BTC): Strong defense seen at $87,300, but real upside trigger lies at $90,500; clearing that will break the descending diagonal from the ATH.
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