XRP has reached 44 million users in Japan, but is this the moment to break through?

Rakuten Wallet will add XRP to spot trading on April 15, 2024, connecting the Token to Japan's largest rewards and payment ecosystem.

Rakuten Group's cryptocurrency division has announced the listing of XRP along with four other assets: Stellar (XLM), Dogecoin (Doge), Shiba Inu (SHIB), and Toncoin (TON).

XRP joins Rakuten's customer ecosystem.

An announcement from Rakuten Wallet ( details here ) confirms that all five new Token support redemption for Rakuten points. This is Japan's largest loyalty program, with over 3 trillion points issued, equivalent to approximately $23 billion USD.

This integration allows users to redeem points directly for XRP without needing to deposit fiat currency. Users can then transfer the XRP value to Rakuten Cash and spend it via Rakuten Pay at over 5 million participating merchants across Japan.

Rakuten Pay currently serves approximately 44 million users, making it one of the most popular cryptocurrency gateways for retail investors in a tightly regulated economy.

To celebrate the listing of XRP, Rakuten Wallet is launching a promotion offering rewards of up to 100,000 yen (approximately $630 USD) in XRP for eligible transactions until May 15, 2024.

XRP price is facing a key resistance level.

Despite positive news, XRP is currently trading around $1.37 and has been held within a descending triangle pattern since February 2024.

A descending triangle pattern is often a technical analysis signal indicating that a downtrend may continue.

XRP is facing strong resistance at the $1.40 level and needs to break above $1.45 to signal a clearer recovery.

If the daily candle closes above $1.43, this bearish pattern could be broken, opening the door for an uptrend to resume. A breakout above the upper trend line of the triangle would change the situation in the short term.

A key support level lies at $1.29. If the price falls below this level, selling pressure could intensify significantly. Traders looking to short sell should wait for the daily candle to close below $1.31 to confirm the downtrend.

Whether the integration with Rakuten will actually generate significant buying power for XRP will depend on the number of users who join in the weeks following its launch on April 15, 2024.