NEW YORK, Feb 17, 2026, 16:44 ET — After-hours.
- Standard Chartered cut its end-2026 XRP target to $2.80 from $8, TheStreet reported. (TheStreet)
- Traders are watching U.S. inflation data and Fed signals for the next push in crypto. (Reuters)
- XRP hovered around $1.49, little changed over the past 24 hours, with about $2.40 billion in trading volume. (CoinMarketCap)
XRP held near $1.50 on Tuesday after Standard Chartered cut its end-2026 price target, a reminder of how quickly the mood has turned in parts of the crypto market. Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank’s head of digital assets research, wrote that recent price action has been “challenging,” adding he expects “further declines near-term,” TheStreet reported. (TheStreet)
Why it matters now: XRP has been trading like a rate bet again, moving with broader risk appetite as investors recalibrate expectations for U.S. interest rates. Any shift in that outlook tends to hit smaller, more volatile tokens first.
There is also a calendar problem. Two big U.S. releases — Fed minutes and inflation data — can pull liquidity out of speculative corners even when nothing “XRP-specific” is happening, as traders cut exposure ahead of known events.
XRP was up about 0.5% over the past 24 hours at $1.49, CoinMarketCap data showed, with 24-hour volume around $2.40 billion. (CoinMarketCap)
On Investing.com’s feed, XRP last traded around $1.48 and has ranged between roughly $1.43 and $1.49 in the session, after a prior close near $1.49. (Investing)
Kendrick’s target cut put numbers on what traders have been saying for days: rallies are getting sold, and positioning feels heavy. Even the revised $2.80 target still implies upside from spot levels, but the note leaned on the idea that the next leg could be down before it’s up.
Macro signals are doing the steering. Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said “several more” rate cuts could be possible in 2026 if inflation gets back on track to 2%, while stressing policymakers need to see it in the data. (Reuters)
But the calm in XRP can break fast if inflation runs hotter or if risk assets wobble. In that scenario, traders often look for a quick exit in thinner markets, and short-term moves can overshoot as leveraged bets get unwound.
The next test comes quickly. Traders will parse the Fed’s January meeting minutes on Wednesday, then shift to Friday’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index — the inflation gauge the Fed leans on — due Feb. 20. (Bureau of Economic Analysis)
