Rumours of price manipulation have resurfaced in the XRP community, this time aimed at Coinbase.
The debate was sparked by activist Stern Drew, who used the blockchain analysis platform XRPScan to track changes in the exchange’s holdings.
According to Drew, Coinbase’s XRP balance dropped sharply over the summer — from nearly one billion tokens in June to less than a third of that amount by late August. The number of wallets holding XRP on the platform also shrank, falling from 52 to just 16. He suggested that these changes coincided with moments when XRP repeatedly failed to clear the $1.20 resistance level.
The claim goes further: Drew believes that the exchange moved XRP into multiple wallets and sold during low-liquidity windows, directing some of the flow toward OTC desks with ties to large financial institutions. In his view, such a strategy would make it easier for institutions to accumulate XRP at cheaper prices.
Not everyone is convinced. Analysts caution that on-chain movements alone cannot prove market manipulation. Exchanges frequently adjust wallet structures for liquidity purposes, and similar declines in holdings have been observed across other platforms. Ripple supporter Bill Morgan argued that price swings mirrored broader market trends, recalling that XRP’s behavior was comparable when Coinbase delisted the asset in earlier years.
Ripple’s CTO, David Schwartz, also dismissed the idea of deliberate suppression. He emphasized that XRP’s value continues to be shaped by external factors such as regulatory uncertainty and wider macroeconomic forces, not by behind-the-scenes maneuvers from a single exchange.
Coinbase has not responded to the allegations, and regulators have not announced any inquiries. For now, the story remains a community-driven debate rather than a confirmed case of wrongdoing. Still, the discussion highlights the enduring distrust some XRP advocates hold toward major U.S. exchanges and the challenges of interpreting blockchain data in an environment where perception often fuels speculation.
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Source: https://coindoo.com/coinbase-accused-of-manipulating-xrp-price-community-debate-intensifies/