XRP Bullish Bets Heat Up as Coinbase Flags Surging Options Demand: Here’s What’s Happening

XRP traders appear to be increasingly positioning for a sharper upside move, with Coinbase Markets spotting a notable surge in demand for bullish options. The exchange says call options are commanding a significant premium over comparable puts, putting the reading at an unusually high level and raising a key market question: are traders positioning for a bigger XRP move, or is bullish demand becoming overcrowded?

Are XRP Options Traders Bracing for a Major Surge?

XRP’s derivatives market is flashing an unusually bullish signal. Coinbase Markets reports that the token’s one-week 25-delta options skew has reached 9.3 volatility points, placing it in the 95th percentile of historical readings.

The remarkably high figure highlights a widening gap between calls and puts, with traders showing a much stronger appetite for upside exposure. Put simply, demand for bets on XRP rising is currently far outpacing demand for comparable downside protection, pointing to heightened expectations for a potentially explosive price move.

“XRP options are leaning toward upside convexity,” Coinbase Markets wrote in a post on X.

For anyone unfamiliar with options markets, the terminology can sound intimidating. Coinbase is essentially comparing how much traders are willing to pay for one-week XRP call options, which benefit from a price increase, versus similar put options, which offer exposure to a decline.

This comparison is known as a 25-delta risk reversal. A rising reading suggests traders are showing stronger demand for calls than puts, pointing to growing interest in XRP’s potential upside.

Notably, XRP’s options market has shifted significantly in recent months. During much of late 2025 and the first half of 2026, the one-week skew remained below zero and occasionally dropped past -10 volatility points, signaling that traders were assigning greater implied volatility to puts than to comparable calls.

That dynamic has since reversed sharply. The skew briefly climbed above 15 volatility points toward the end of August before retreating. It has now turned higher again, moving back into double-digit territory and highlighting renewed demand for upside exposure.

The shift in options sentiment follows XRP’s price rebound, with the payments-focused token regaining momentum after recent weakness. XRP has roared nearly 14% higher over the past seven days, putting the token firmly back on traders’ radar, according to CoinGecko data.