Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has taken a strong stance against former US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Jay Clayton over the agency's regulatory approach.

This comes as the SEC has been actively pursuing regulatory action against various crypto exchanges and companies since early 2023.

In a recent interview with CNBC on June 29, 2023, Jay Clayton expressed his belief that the SEC should only take legal action against specific companies when there is a strong legal basis to do so.

He stressed the importance of regulatory agencies introducing regulations and lawsuits that they believe will successfully withstand judicial scrutiny.

Garlinghouse wasted no time responding to Clayton's statements, pointing out that the former SEC chairman filed a lawsuit against Ripple, himself, and Ripple co-founder Christian Larsen in December 2020 .

In that lawsuit, the SEC accused the company and the two executives of conducting an “ongoing, unregistered offering of digital asset securities” and claimed they raised more than $1.3 billion through the sale of the XRP token.

The SEC's decision to dismiss the allegations without prejudice came after Judge Analisa Torres ruled partially in Ripple's favor in July.

She said retail sales of the XRP token did not meet the legal definition of a security.

While Clayton's remarks suggest a more cautious approach to regulatory action, Garlinghouse's sharp criticism is a reminder of the contentious legal battles and regulatory uncertainty that continue to surround the cryptocurrency space.