One year anniversary since the company’s biggest partial win

TL;DR

Ripple’s partial court victory a year ago, where certain sales of XRP were not considered securities, boosted the price of the asset. The ongoing trial continues with disputes over sanctions. XRP surged 23% last week, likely due to speculation that the lawsuit could conclude soon.

A year passed

Despite the many developments in recent months, the legal dispute between Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues. It all started in December 2020 when the regulator sued the company and some of its executives, accusing them of conducting an unregistered securities offering through XRP sales.

Ripple scored a major court victory almost exactly a year ago (on July 13) when Judge Torres ruled that its programmatic sales to secondary trading platforms do not constitute offers of investment contracts. The decision fueled a massive surge in XRP, whose price soared more than 70% in a matter of hours, surpassing the $0.80 mark.

Shortly thereafter, magistrates dismissed the SEC’s intention to appeal the ruling, while CEO Brad Garlinghouse and executive chairman Chris Larsen were acquitted of all charges brought by the agency.

According to some industry participants, these triumphs (albeit partial) gave Ripple the upper hand in the battle. That said, a ruling in favor of the company could lead to massive volatility and a potential increase in the price of XRP (similar to what was seen after previous victories).

The lawsuit went to trial in April this year. Instead of an outcome, however, it continues to offer further confrontation. One point of contention is the size of Ripple’s potential penalty. The SEC initially sought a fine of $2 billion, while the company insisted on no more than $10 million.

Ripple also pointed to Judge Amy Jackson’s decision to reject the SEC’s claims that secondary market sales of Binance’s BNB token constituted securities transactions. It filed a Notice of Supplemental Authority, arguing that the ruling supports its case that the alleged illegal sales of XRP do not warrant “harsh remedies.”

The SEC argued that the lawsuit against Binance is “completely irrelevant” to the lawsuit against Ripple. On the other hand, he softened his tone, proposing a reduced penalty of $102.6 million.

XRP Price Outlook

Ripple’s native token has been one of the top performers in the crypto market in recent days. It’s up 23% on a weekly basis, briefly breaking the $0.55 mark for the first time since early May (according to CoinGecko data).

One possible reason could be the increased expectation that demand is winding down. Some of those speculating that an official settlement could be announced as early as this summer include US attorneys Fred Rispoli and Jeremy Hogan.

Those who are curious to learn more about the case and its potential impact on the price of XRP, feel free to check out our dedicated video below:

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