A top analyst says XRP missing his $9 target for the end of this year would actually be more bullish for his higher 2026 goal.
Analyst Says XRP Missing $9 This Year is Bullish
In a recent update, Dr. Cat confirmed that the recent XRP weakness doesn’t rattle him. He explained that XRP price failing to hit the $6–$9 goal this year would not derail his outlook. Instead, he believes it would lay a substantial foundation for the push toward $20–$30 in 2026, which is more likely.
If I'm wrong about $6-$9 $XRP by EOY even better.
Because then I would be even more confident about $20-$30 $XRP in 2026. pic.twitter.com/uegWXdBUQK
— Dr Cat (@DoctorCatX) August 24, 2025
He stressed that traders needed to watch the XRP/BTC pair closely, since the earliest it could flip bullish was Aug. 18. If that shift played out and Bitcoin climbed toward $140,000, he estimated XRP could reach around $6, with the XRP/BTC pair potentially rising to 4,135 satoshis.
Interestingly, his earlier analysis from July set the groundwork for this scenario. At the time, he said XRP had moved about 4.5 cents above the daily Kijun Sen and had not yet confirmed a close. He suggested price action carried more than an 80% chance of finding a bottom by July 26, with July 24 showing the strongest alignment in time cycles.
$XRP Quick Update
So far frontran the daily Kijun Sen by 4.5 cents, still not closed candle.
Still not clear whether it will be tapped eventually or this was it.
But in any case, time-wise, the chance to set a bottom by the 26th of July is over 80% and the biggest confluence… https://t.co/DkGX7ZIoo6 pic.twitter.com/6VrFBSGf9e
— Dr Cat (@DoctorCatX) July 24, 2025
Dr. Cat applied this forecast to both the USD and BTC pairs. He also noted that the weekly, three-day, and monthly charts lined up well, provided support held, to coil up for a rally after Aug. 17. He described the late-July period as a strong opportunity to buy the dip and predicted a run to $9 between September and December.
XRP Run to $30 More Likely
However, this $6 to $9 forecast for year-end is increasingly looking unlikely. Meanwhile, in his latest update today, Dr. Cat strengthened his long-term conviction. He raised his confidence level for 2026 targets from 85% to 90%.
His projections remain the same: Bitcoin climbing toward $270,000 and XRP trading between $19 and $30. At the same time, he warned that the market could face a painful stretch in the coming months, which might convince many that a bear market has returned.
