Ripple finished its July escrow release with a second unexpected unlock of 500 million XRP on July 4. This drop came after an initial 500 million release on July 1, which surprised the market with a split rollout instead of the usual one-time, one billion XRP unlock.
The second transfer was spotted by Whale Alert, and XRPwallets confirmed it. They said that the July cycle was now officially closed, with a total of one billion XRP unlocked and 700 million XRP relocked.
The rest of the 300 million XRP is reportedly going toward ecosystem utilities like on-demand liquidity (ODL), exchange-traded products and other infrastructure needs.
This split approach is just part of a bigger change in how Ripple manages its XRP reserves. Since March, the company has been moving away from a rigid formula of unlocking and immediately relocking most of the supply.Â
Instead, it now staggers, unlocks and redirects flows based on real-time demand and internal strategies.
The XRP escrow system is still run by smart contracts, but Ripple is using that system in a more dynamic way. With the market changing and token utility evolving, the company is choosing to be flexible instead of predictable.