XRP Whale Bets $224K on Dead-Flat Price Through June — Right as Volatility Risks Stack Up

A large trader on Deribit executed a single-block "short strangle" — selling 1.5 million contracts of both the $1.40 call and put options expiring June 26 — and collected $224,500 in upfront premiums. The position profits in full only if XRP stays pinned near $1.40 through expiry; any sharp move in either direction flips it into a loss.

The timing is notable. XRP has traded in a tight $1.30–$1.50 band since February, which makes the range-bound thesis look defensible on recent history. But macro headwinds — rising global bond yields compressing risk appetite — and the Senate Banking Committee's advancement of the Clarity Act to a full Senate floor vote inject real uncertainty into that calm.

Ripple's chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty called the committee's decision a "monumental outcome" for the bill, which would establish a clear U.S. regulatory framework for digital assets. For…