- Ripple lawsuit ruling is expected soon, following the new US crypto bill, FIT21.
- SEC Chair Gary Gensler says the agency has fared well in legal battles while speaking at the ICI 2024 Leadership Summit.
- XRP rallied past $0.53 on Friday, adding 3% in value this week.
The ruling of the Ripple (XRP) lawsuit is pending, and holders await the court’s decision in the legal battle between the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the payment remittance firm. Ripple’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Brad Garlinghouse and Chief Legal Officer (CLO) Stuart Alderoty have slammed SEC Chair Gary Gensler and his “regulation by enforcement” approach on more than one occasion.
Speaking at a leadership conference, Chair Gensler commented on the SEC’s performance in court cases.
XRP sustained its gains this week, rallying past $0.53 on Friday. The altcoin held on to a 5% increase in its value this week on Binance.
Daily Digest Market Movers: Ripple ruling awaited amidst FIT21 bill, Chair Gensler’s comments
- XRP holders await a court ruling in the SEC vs. Ripple lawsuit while agency Chair Gary Gensler comments on the agency’s performance in court cases.
- Chair Gensler spoke at the ICI 2024 Leadership Summit and said that the SEC has done very well in court on crypto cases.
- The blanket statement likely does not apply to the agency’s case against the payment remittance firm Ripple.
- In the SEC vs. Ripple lawsuit, the regulator alleged that the firm sold unregistered securities (XRP) to its institutional clients at different prices/ discounts therefore the firm netted “ill-gotten gains,” and demanded a fine of $2 billion be imposed on the firm.
- Ripple responded with a $10 million fine request, and according to attorneys familiar with the case, the firm is prepared for an injunction (ban) on the sale of XRP to institutional clients in the US.
- The SEC has noted wins in its ongoing lawsuits against Coinbase and exacted settlements/ fines from crypto exchanges Binance and Kraken in the past.
- The court’s ruling in the SEC vs. Ripple lawsuit is anticipated, and it remains to be seen whether the regulator will secure a victory in its legal battle.
- Pro-crypto attorneys and analysts in the XRP community speculate the impact of the newly approved FIT21 bill by one house of Congress.
- Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse voiced his opinion on FIT21 in a recent tweet on X:
Well, this certainly HAS aged well!
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) May 22, 2024
Today, more than ever, we are seeing what a political liability Gensler has been to the Biden administration.
It's the reason we saw 71 Dems cross the aisle and support FIT21.
We are just getting started! https://t.co/Ff6x78mgax
Technical analysis: XRP eyes over 7% gains as it extends rally
Ripple has been in an uptrend since April 13. The altcoin has formed higher highs and higher lows, as seen in the XRP/USDT 1-day chart. In its uptrend, the altcoin has preserved 3% gains from the week and surged past $0.53 on Friday.
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD), a momentum indicator, shows there is underlying positive momentum in the XRP uptrend. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) reads 52.93, supporting the recovery in XRP price.
If Ripple continues its uptrend, it could extend gains by over 7%, climbing to $0.5703, the high observed on May 6 and April 22. This level has acted as resistance for the altcoin since April 13.
XRP/USDT 1-day chart
On the downside, the XRP price could sweep liquidity at the May 23 low of $0.5027. This is a key level for the altcoin as it is close to $0.50, a psychologically important support for Ripple.
SEC vs Ripple lawsuit FAQs
It depends on the transaction, according to a court ruling released on July 14: For institutional investors or over-the-counter sales, XRP is a security. For retail investors who bought the token via programmatic sales on exchanges, on-demand liquidity services and other platforms, XRP is not a security.
The United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Ripple and its executives of raising more than $1.3 billion through an unregistered asset offering of the XRP token. While the judge ruled that programmatic sales aren’t considered securities, sales of XRP tokens to institutional investors are indeed investment contracts. In this last case, Ripple did breach the US securities law and will need to keep litigating over the around $729 million it received under written contracts.
The ruling offers a partial win for both Ripple and the SEC, depending on what one looks at. Ripple gets a big win over the fact that programmatic sales aren’t considered securities, and this could bode well for the broader crypto sector as most of the assets eyed by the SEC’s crackdown are handled by decentralized entities that sold their tokens mostly to retail investors via exchange platforms, experts say. Still, the ruling doesn’t help much to answer the key question of what makes a digital asset a security, so it isn’t clear yet if this lawsuit will set precedent for other open cases that affect dozens of digital assets. Topics such as which is the right degree of decentralization to avoid the “security” label or where to draw the line between institutional and programmatic sales are likely to persist.
The SEC has stepped up its enforcement actions toward the blockchain and digital assets industry, filing charges against platforms such as Coinbase or Binance for allegedly violating the US Securities law. The SEC claims that the majority of crypto assets are securities and thus subject to strict regulation. While defendants can use parts of Ripple’s ruling in their favor, the SEC can also find reasons in it to keep its current strategy of regulation by enforcement.
The court decision is a partial summary judgment. The ruling can be appealed once a final judgment is issued or if the judge allows it before then. The case is in a pretrial phase, in which both Ripple and the SEC still have the chance to settle.
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