Why Ripple’s ‘currency’ classification still hangs in the balance?
|- A US court judge delays the ruling on Ripple’s motion to dismiss.
- Regulators continue to seat on the fence regarding Ripple’s classification as a currency or a security.
Ripple, the company behind the issuance of XRP desires nothing but for the token to be classified as a ‘currency’ just like Bitcoin and Ethereum. However, with the ongoing class-action lawsuit, this fate hangs in the balance.
Ripple’s filed motion to dismiss the lawsuit is reported to have been taken under submission at the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
However, the judge, Phyllis J. Hamilton did not give the verdict as scheduled in a hearing on January 15. It is unclear how long the judge will take to decide on the case that has been running for three years. The motion to dismiss was reported to have been filed in December by Ripple Labs. Ripple Labs argued that the plaintiff, Bradley Sostack filed after a three-year window had elapsed. However, the plaintiff is adamant to accept the terms and wants the company to take responsibility for the illegal sale of 'security' tokens.
Regulators remain undecided on the status of XRP
The Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Heath Tarbert chose not to refer to XRP as a security or a commodity in a recent interview. At the same time, he did not object to the possibility of XRP coming under the oversight of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)?
In retrospect, even if the judge allows Ripple’s motion to dismiss to sail through, its future as a cryptocurrency lies in the balance and it will be up to the SEC to decide. Even a slight crackdown on XRP could bring an imbalance in the market and a possible sell-off.
Read also: Ripple Price Analysis: XRP/USD holds above $0.22 support amid widespread correction
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