This Ripple vs SEC Lawsuit could be crucial for the cryptocurrency industry, as it may affect the treatment of other digital assets. If Ripple wins, which is likely, it would be a major win for crypto, especially for XRP holders. Conversely, an SEC victory could require broader definitions of financial systems. Since regulating digital assets is complex, an SEC win could significantly impact future regulations.
Brief Lawsuit Overview: Ripple vs SEC Lawsuit
Battle between these two entities lasts for almost 4 years, which is a very long period. The essence of the case is that the SEC believes that Ripple sold unregistered securities to their investors in the form of their XRP token. They filed the lawsuit not only against the company itself but they also involved Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse and co-founder Chris Larsen.
However the case may be Ripple seems to be winning the case so far and in 2023. They took 3 wins which although are not deciding but partial still hint that they will prevail. First, New York judge Torres ruled the case in Ripple Labs favor in July 2023., 2 months both of the founders were dropped of all charges. And they made a deal with Singaporean authorities to carry out their operations in the country which doubled XRP trading volume.
Latest Updates on Ripple vs SEC Lawsuit
On March 26. The SEC requested judge Analisa Torres to impose a fine worth 1.95 billion dollars. To be more precise the fine is broken down into 3 parts as follows:
● $876 million in disgorgement
● $198 million in prejudgment interest, and
● $876 million civil penalty, amounting to a total of $1.95 billion.
However, Ripple’s chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty made a statement that the fine is not based, and that Ripple will submit a response on 22nd of April.
Earlier this week on 22nd of April Ripple’s chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty stated that the company filed its official response to the agency’s request. The company proposed that the fine should not exceed 10$ million based on some outlined reasons by the company.
On May 6 it is expected for The SEC to file its response brief under seal, after which there will be a meeting to address redactions.
Conclusion
The main question that bothers crypto investors especially XRP holders right now is “Will it come to the settlement?”. That is certainly a hard question to answer since the requests between both parties are very distinct, approximately 2 billion dollars away. Ripple seems to have a very loyal community since they are still bullish on their currency even after 4 years of trial. Recall that XRP is one of the rare top 100 cryptocurrencies from the last bull run that didn’t hit its all time high which was directly caused by the lawsuit.
But that fact did not discourage Ripple’s loyal community since Ripple’s XRP holds its top 10 position by market cap throughout the whole trial which is impressive. The final trial and win in Ripple’s favor would mark a start of a rally for their currency if not for all altcoins. As it was seen last year on July 13. when it was decided that XRP is not security, its price went up by around 80% in less than one day.
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Reference list:
SEC vs. Ripple Lawsuit Explained
Lawsuit Timeline
Ripple’s response