Ripple ecosystem loses another XRP-based project due to AMLD5

XRP, the third-largest digital asset with the current market value of $10.5 billion, has gained 3.5% in recent 24 hours. The coin has been moving in sync with the cryptocurrency market; however, XRP's gains are less spectacular. Unlike Bitcoin or Ethereum, XRP has not been able to retest the recent high as of yet.

XRP project closes down due to tough regulatory conditions

XRP developer Wietse Wind said that his XRPtext project would cease to exist by the end of February. He cited regulatory concerns among the primary reasons for winding down the project and urged users to withdraw money until February 28. 

Hey #XRPCommunity, please withdraw your funds from http://sms.xrptext.com before Feb. 28th 2020, as I am shutting this project down. It was fun, it (still is) was a nice proof of concept, but it is simply not being used enough to get it licensed (implement KYC, AML, etc.)

Unclaimed account balances that do not exceed $20 will be sent to charity on March 1, 2020.

XRPtext allowed XRP users to send and receive XRP-denominated funds via text message to another mobile phone number. Notably, Wietse Wind was also a lead developer of another XRP project,  XRParrot, which was also forced to close due to strict anti-money laundering guidelines adopted by the Netherland. XRParrot allowed users to exchange XRP to fiat and vice versa.

XRP/USD: technical picture

From the long-term point of view, XRP/USD bottomed out at $0.1752 on December 18, 2019, and has been moving within an upside channel ever since. The price attempted to break the upper boundary of the channel on several occasions, but each time it reversed to the downside. At the time of writing, XRP/USD is sitting in the middle of the above-said channel with the upper boundary now at $0.2552, reinforced by SMA200 daily. Once it is out of the way, the upside is likely to gain traction with the next focus on psychological $0.2600 and $0.3000. This psychological barrier is strengthened by SMA50 weekly located on approach.

On the downside, the initial support is created by SMA100 daily at $0.2340. A sustainable move lower will expose SMA50 daily at $0.2120 and the lower boundary of the above-said channel at $0.2080. This area is likely to slow down the downside momentum; however, once it is broken, the sell-off may continue towards psychological $0.2000.

XRP/USD daily chart