The judicial battle between Ripple Labs and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States is coming to an end. Four years of litigation have left lessons and precedents for the crypto world, as well as good forecasts for the market.
Pending a settlement or resolution of the case, analysts anticipate that the Ripple Labs crypto price will, XRP could reach all-time highs. Only in the first 24 hours, after it was anticipated that the litigation could end, the price of XRP climbed almost 10%.
As you may recall, the SEC took legal action against Ripple, for a Alleged unregistered securities offering of $1.300 billion in 2020; which is why in 2023 the firm led by Brad Garlinghouse was fined $125 million for violating the U.S. Securities Act of 1933.
clear rules
The legal battle between Ripple and the SEC is not a simple litigation, but due to its implications, the eventual resolution may transform the way digital money is regulated in the United States, by making the rules of the game much clearer.
During the process, for example, the court that fined the firm in 2023 stipulated that Only in some cases, XRP can be considered a security.r (security), and ruled that Ripple sold its cryptocurrency to institutional clients, violating US federal laws.
Despite this, the trial said that the sales operations executed by the developer of the XRP Ledger blockchain network, were not considered as investment contracts.
Although the fine anticipated that the legal conflict would end, the case gained momentum again in October 2024, when the SEC filed an appeal before a Second Circuit court, and a possible resolution thereof, is what keeps the market in suspense.
White smoke for Ripple
The latest news on the litigation came from Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse himself, who stated that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will withdraw the lawsuit which he maintains against his signature.
Ripple's potential victory was announced by Garlinghouse at a Cointelegraph Summit on March 19. Giving some details about the SEC's dismissal of the lawsuit, he said: “It feels like a victory for the industry and the beginning of a new chapter.” for the digital currency market.
The withdrawal of the lawsuit against Ripple would join a a series of favorable court decisions that have been issued by the SEC since Donald Trump took office as president of the United States last January. As expected, the new presidency changed the punitive course followed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, for one that is more friendly to the industry.
During Joe Biden's presidency, the SEC advanced more than 100 legal actions against cryptocurrency companies, arguing that the products were not properly registered, so they could be considered securities and therefore be regulated by the Securities Commission.
However, under Trump, there have been dismissed several lawsuitsThis is the case of the digital asset firms Kraken and Uniswap, which are they dropped the charges, while the lawsuit against Binance is on hold for 60 days.
For now, some analysts believe that if the lawsuit against Ripple is withdrawn, the 2023 fine of $125 million will remain in effect and The firm will once again be free from judicial pressure and focused on its growth..
Positive forecasts
Ripple CEO Garlinghouse takes it as a given that the SEC will drop the appeal against his company, the investor He only sees good news in the short and medium term for the cryptocurrency industry.
He recalled that his company is focusing on expansion, which is why it has invested more than 2.000 billion dollars, and some of the acquisitions are not related to XRP.
Meanwhile, the Analysts see XRP as very likely to skyrocket, As it has done in the past, if it were granted the benefit of the lawsuit's withdrawal. In July 2023, the cryptocurrency surged 75% in just 48 hours after Ripple's partial victory in court was announced.
Now, if the court settlement is finalized and the crypto's performance is repeated in 2023, XRP could rise from the current $2,51 up to a value between $7 and $13.
