Ripple v. SEC Lawsuit: Big Developments This Week?

TL;DR

• Ripple’s legal battle with the SEC continues, with key rulings in August and ongoing appeals.
• Speculation surrounds Ripple’s Swell event in Miami, with potential major announcements that could impact XRP’s price.

Recent Updates and Possible Developments

Despite the numerous court rulings in the past several months, the legal battle between Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) goes on.

One of the most important happened at the start of August when Judge Torres determined that the sales of XRP on secondary markets to retail investors did not constitute securities transactions. At the same time, though, she ordered Ripple to pay a $125 million fine for violating certain rules. 

The company seemed pleased with the penalty, which represented just a fraction of the $2 billion the SEC initially requested. For its part, the regulator appealed a 2023 verdict set by Judge Torres (back then, she once again ruled that secondary sales of XRP did not constitute securities sales). 

Last week, Ripple’s CLO Stuart Alderoty said the firm filed a cross-appeal “to ensure nothing’s left on the table, including the argument that there can’t be an “investment contract” without there being essential rights and obligations found in a contract.”

He noted that the agency has already stated that it doesn’t contend with the ruling that XRP itself isn’t a security. “They even apologized in another case for suggesting a token itself could be a security,” the executive added.

Most recently, X user Ashely PROSPER shed further details regarding the specifics of the appeal process:

“After the appeal is docketed, the clerk refers the case to the CAMP office for the scheduling of a settlement conference. The conference takes place in the CAMP office or by telephone…

Counsel’s appearance at the conference is required, and counsel must be prepared to discuss the legal, factual, and procedural issues in depth. An attorney or client who fails to participate in the conference process in good faith may be sanctioned by the Court.”

The X user also said the SEC has until October 16 to reveal what it is actually appealing against. Interestingly, the deadline coincides with the same day Ripple Swell (the company’s annual flagship event) ends.

Various Speculations

This year, Ripple Swell will take place in Miami, Florida. The company revealed some of the preparations on X, while CEO Brad Garlinghouse welcomed the XRP Army to the eighth annual event. 

This caused a wave of speculation that Ripple would announce some major news during the gathering. Some guesses include an official launch of the firm’s US-pegged stablecoin RLUSD or a new strategy in the battle against the SEC.

Such developments could significantly impact XRP’s price, which has struggled to catch up with the rest of the leading cryptocurrencies lately. Currently, it trades at around $0.54 (per CoinGecko’s data), representing a 13% decline on a two-week scale.

XRP Price, Source: CoinGecko