SEC Drops Case Against Ripple

The news comes after the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Fintech Ripple agreed to the dismissal. The decision means that a trial scheduled in April 2024 will not go ahead.

What Have the Parties Agreed on?

The decision is a big win for Ripple and means that CEO Brad Garlinghouse and Executive Chairman Chris Larsen will not need to stand trial in 2024.

A Ripple press release stated, “The SEC voted to dismiss charges with prejudice – a stunning capitulation by the government.”

This marks the third time Ripple has received positive news in its case against the SEC. First, there was of course the ruling in July this year that “XRP is not, in and of itself a security.”

And in October Judge Torres denied a SEC application to lodge an interlocutory appeal.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse commented,

Does it Mean the Case is Over?

While the 2024 trial is now off the cards, there are still other matters to be decided. In the July ruling Judge Torres declared that Ripple’s sales to institutional investors constituted securities. Both parties must come to an agreement on this matter which involves the sale of XRP worth US $700 million ($1.1 billion).

However, Fox Business Journalist Eleanor Terrett stated it’s important to recognise that the SEC might still challenge Judge Torres’s ruling on the “programmatic sales” and “other distributions” of XRP. On October 3rd, Torres turned down the agency’s plea for an interim appeal, stating they needed to wait until the trial concluded. Given that there’s no trial now, the SEC has the option to appeal following the penalty stage.

What about the XRP Price?

Not surprisingly XRP reacted well to the good news. This is even though the ruling that XRP is in itself not a security was not up for debate any longer. Nevertheless, XRP is up over 6% in the last 24 hours and is currently trading at US $0.521 ($0.825).