- The SEC has filed an appeal against Ripple, potentially challenging a 2023 ruling regarding programmatic sales of XRP, according to attorney Jeremy Hogan.
- XRP’s price has dropped to US$0.52, reflecting a 2.23% decrease over the past day and a 10.90% decline in the past week.
- Hogan criticised the SEC’s appeal, calling it a “big mistake” and suggesting that even if the SEC wins, it would only result in a larger financial settlement without protecting investors.
The XRP army can’t seem to catch a break, as the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed an appeal on Wednesday, seeking to overturn a court ruling in its lawsuit against Ripple.
The appeal challenges a 2023 decision by Judge Analisa Torres (as expected), which ruled that secondary sales of Ripple’s XRP token did not qualify as securities transactions. However, the institutional sale of XRP constituted unregistered securities offerings, leading to a fine of over US$125M (AU$182M) for Ripple, way less than the US$1.9B (AU$2.7B) the SEC requested originally.
Related: On the Radar – Coins to Watch: SUI and SEI
While XRP’s price was poised to appreciate considerably this October, things are turning out differently. Data from CoinMarketCap shows XRP’s price is currently at US$0.52 (AU$0.72), a 2.23% decline from yesterday and 10.90% in the last seven days.
A Big Mistake
Attorney Jeremy Hogan, known for his analysis of the SEC v. Ripple case, criticised the SEC’s decision to appeal the court’s ruling on Ripple’s programmatic sales of XRP.
Big mistake by the SEC. It will appeal the programmatic sales ruling and IF it wins, it will get more money from Ripple and have protected no one.
Jeremy HoganThe attorney called the move a “big mistake,” suggesting that if the SEC wins the appeal, it may only result in a larger financial settlement from Ripple without offering any meaningful protection for investors. His statement echoes the growing concerns that the SEC’s legal actions may ultimately fail to achieve their intended goal of safeguarding investors.
Blue Sky for Crypto
According to Hogan, Ripple will raise its “Blue Sky” law issue, and if it wins, the SEC’s ability to regulate the entire crypto space will be essentially destroyed, Hogan added.
Regarding Blue Sky law, Hogan is referring to state regulations, laws designed to protect investors from fraud and ensure that companies provide full disclosure when offering securities. Ripple could argue that its sales of XRP were compliant with state regulations, potentially weakening the SEC’s claim that the coin is a security under federal law.
Basically, what Hogan is saying is that Ripple could challenge the SEC’s jurisdiction if the company plays Blue Sky’s resource successfully, something that would have unprecedented changes for the regulatory body under the command of its Chair Gary Gensler.
This is not a good calculation of risk by the SEC (it would make a poor stock trader).
Jeremy HoganRelated: Ripple’s RLUSD Stablecoin to Boost XRP, Provide Liquidity and Forex Use Cases
What Timing!
Oh, and something odd—the SEC’s Chief Enforcement Officer, Gurbir Grewal, is leaving the agency, which he announced on the same day as the SEC’s filing for appeal… For those who are missing the context here, Grewal was heavily involved in the SEC’s case against Ripple Labs, overseeing the enforcement actions related to the unregistered securities offerings accusations.
Even more odd is SWIFT’s recent announcement regarding its live trials of digital asset transactions one day after the SEC appealed.
Yassin Mobarak, a crypto entrepreneur, wrote on X:
Nothing is more frustrating in business than knowing you have a product- market fit and ahead of everyone else only to be locked out of the market long enough until your advantage no longer matters.
Yassin Mobarak, crypto entrepreneurIn related developments, Bitwise filed for an XRP Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) trust with the SEC. We’ll see how the Ripple-SEC case plays a role here as well.
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