The saga of the legal battle between the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple Labs seems to be inching towards an end. This conclusion is based on information from two well-informed sources relayed by FOX Business journalist Eleanor Terrett. The journalist’s sources signaled that the SEC and Ripple are in the final stages of wrapping up their case, with the delay in reaching an agreement being attributed to Ripple’s legal team negotiating more favorable terms.
The SEC has been engaged in a wave of lawsuits against various crypto companies, which it has recently withdrawn. These firms include notable names in the crypto space, like Coinbase, Gemini, Robinhood, Uniswap Labs, Kraken, and OpenSea. An agreement to dismiss the securities enforcement case revolving around MetaMask has also been reached between the SEC and Consensys.
Furthermore, Binance and the SEC have jointly filed a motion to pause their ongoing litigation for 60 days, while the civil fraud lawsuit against Justin Sun by the SEC is also on hold, with both sides reportedly aiming for a resolution.
However, the legal tussle between the SEC and Ripple Labs keeps dragging on. The delay in reaching a settlement is attributed to ongoing negotiations around the terms of the August court decision, which instructed Ripple to pay a hefty fine of $125 million and imposed a permanent injunction preventing the company from selling its cryptocurrency XRP to institutional investors.
Ripple’s legal team is contending that if the SEC’s new leadership is reconsidering its enforcement approach, giving other crypto firms an opportunity for a fresh start, Ripple should not be obligated to accept penalties based on a past period of regulatory ambiguity.
Legal experts have also weighed in on the issue. James Murphy, a prominent crypto lawyer, suggested in a statement shared earlier this month that the delay might not be solely the SEC’s doing. He opined that Ripple is actively working with the SEC to have certain parts of Judge Torres’s August ruling overturned or modified.
In Murphy’s view, the ruling, which was largely seen as a victory for XRP holders, contained two points that were problematic for Ripple. The securities law violations pertaining to institutional sales and the permanent injunction could potentially hinder Ripple’s future plans, including a public market debut. The resolution of the case is thus taking longer than expected due to the lack of a clear precedent for dealing with such a situation.
As the legal battle draws to a close, the crypto industry and investors alike wait with bated breath, with the outcome likely to set a precedent for future cases involving digital assets and securities law.
