Ripple celebrated a year after its “partial victory” over the SEC
Last summer, the Southern District of New York court ruled in favor of Ripple Labs in a case against the SEC that has been ongoing since 2020. A year later, the company's chief lawyer, Stuart Alderothy, discussed the impact of the decision on the industry.
“First of all, it was a watershed moment, clarifying that from a legal perspective, a token—in this case, XRP—is not itself a security,” he said.
On July 13, 2023, Judge Analisa Torres concluded that sales and other distributions of XRP did not constitute an offer and sale of investment contracts. However, Ripple’s victory was incomplete - according to the court decision, the purchase of coins worth more than $700 million by institutions violated US laws.
According to Olderothy, this decision has set a precedent for many other companies (most recently Binance). Thus, the courts “recognized gross abuses on the part of the SEC and a lack of dedication to the law under Chairman Gary Gensler,” the lawyer said.
The courts have provided much-needed scrutiny of the Commission's conduct, but providing clarity on every token through endless litigation is unacceptable. Politicians on both sides are increasingly frustrated by the lack of legislative progress on cryptocurrencies as the US continues to lag behind the rest of the world,” the Ripple executive added.
He emphasized that the company's case against the regulator has not yet been fully completed. However, Alderothy expressed confidence in maintaining the decision regarding the status of XRP.
“Don't be distracted by the SEC's ongoing efforts to drag Ripple and the rest of the industry into litigation—the agency's runway is coming to an end. Ripple and the entire industry will become and will become stronger even long after Gensler’s departure,” the lawyer concluded.
In March, the SEC asked the court to impose a fine of $2 billion on Ripple Labs, including penalties. The company later demanded that the payment be reduced to $10 million.
Let's remember that in February, Ripple investors filed an updated class action lawsuit against the company alleging violations of securities laws.
