After almost four years of intense legal battles, the long-standing incident between the US Securities Commission (SEC) and Ripple finally comes to an end. The SEC, which first filed a lawsuit in December 2020, claiming Ripple’s cryptocurrency XRP was unregistered security, has now dropped its appeal.
Girlinghouse looks back on the long battle
“It was a long battle,” CEO Brad Garlinghouse said in an interview with Bloomberg. But now, Ripple has more certainty and, frankly, for me, because the SEC sued me. ”
He revealed that the SEC has officially waived the appeal in a lawsuit that has been ongoing since the lawsuit was filed in December 2020. Ripple won a major victory in the summer of 2023 when Judge Torres determined that XRP, the cryptocurrency at the heart of the case, was not security. This ruling marked a pivotal moment in the case.
SEC appeals will be removed
Despite the SEC’s withdrawal from appeal, Garlinghouse made it clear that the case was not completely over. Cross appeal is still pending, but dynamics are shifting. “We’ll go from the defendant to the plaintiff,” he explained. “Now we’re in the driver’s seat and decide how we want to go.”
Ripple’s legal victory and the future of the industry
For Ripple, the outcome of this case is important not only for the company itself, but also for the broader crypto industry. Garlinghouse noted that Ripple spent more than $150 million defending the lawsuit. It is intended to support the entire cryptocurrency sector, not just legal costs aimed at protecting the company. “It was important for the industry as a whole,” he said.
Judge ruling and Ripple strategy
Garlinghouse also commented on the broader implications of the case’s resolution, particularly in terms of the legal status of XRP. “The SEC’s decision to stop appealing is a key moment,” he said. “It’s clear, especially given the judge’s ruling, that it’s likely that the SEC is regretting that it first brought the case,” however some elements of the case have not yet been resolved, including the $125 million civil penalty ripple being ordered to pay. The fine is currently held in escrow, with the final solution to the case being pending.
$125 million fine and what’s next?
Ripple is interested in the possibility of recovering the $125 million fine, given that investors have never been harmed in the process. “There was no harm to the investors and the investors weren’t losing money,” Garlinghouse said, suggesting that the punishment could be reconsidered if the lawsuit approaches its conclusion.
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