Recent Updates and Final Trial in October 2024

Recent Updates on Ripple vs SEC

Ripple had been involved in a legal battle based in the Northern District of California. The regulator had accused the company, its subsidiary XRP II LLC, and CEO Brad Garlinghouse of offering and selling amounts of its native token without required registration with the relevant authorities, which violated federal and state securities laws.

The court has segregated cases into two categories: the Federal Securities Claims Class and the California State Securities Claims Class. The Federal Securities Claims Class focuses on all individuals and entities who have purchased XRP between July 3, 2017, and June 30, 2023, and have retained their wealth or sold it at a loss.

The latter focuses on those who bought XRP directly from the defendants or anyone selling it on their behalf. However, both categories exclude classes of corporate officers, members of the boards of directors, senior executives of the defendant, members of their immediate families, and their legal representatives, such as heirs, successors or assigns. Moreover, it also excludes entities where defendants have a material interest.

Recently, the court has explained that the affected people and entities have two options either to stay in the lawsuit, to retain the possibility of getting money after a potential settlement or to immediately move out with no benefits. However, with the second option, plaintiffs are allowed to sue Ripple separately. 

The deadline to apply for exclusion has been announced to be April 5, 2024. The trial is scheduled for October 2024 and in the trial, the plaintiffs would be required to prove their claims against the defendants.

War of Ripple and SEC

The viewers or readers who have been following the crypto landscape for the last few years are aware of the legal battle between Ripple and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The battle began in December 2020.

The US SEC had accused the firm of illegally raising more than $1.3 Billion in an unregistered securities offering by selling XRP. In its defense, Ripple argued that XRP is a currency rather than a security and thus does not fall under the SEC’s jurisdiction.

Now, in 2024, the case is approaching its final phase, with its first grand trial scheduled for April 23, 2024. Ripple had the upper hand in the previous hearings and secured three important partial wins in court during the year. 

The first trial, which already occurred in July 2023 in the presence of Federal Judge Analisa Torres, ruled that the company’s programmatic sales to secondary trading platforms did not constitute offers of investment contracts.

However, the magistrates later dismissed the Commission’s wish to appeal the decision, whereas Brand Garlinghouse, CEO and Chris Larsen, Executive Chairman of Ripple, were set free of all the charges against them that were brought by the watchdog.

Recently, the SEC scored a point in the presence of Judge Sarah Netburn, who ordered Ripple to disclose essential financial records for 2022 and 2023.

Conclusion: Impact of the ongoing legal battle

The case can significantly impact the entire crypto space. In the past, XRP prices surged and the digital asset markets have experienced a boost after the decisive victory of Ripple.

On the other hand, in the upcoming hearings, if Ripple fails to prove its point and if a decision is made against Ripple, XRP could show negative price movement while stricter rules in the space could slow adoption and advancement of the industry.

Andrew is a blockchain developer who developed his interest in cryptocurrencies while pursuing his post-graduation major in blockchain development. He is a keen observer of details and shares his passion for writing, along with coding. His backend knowledge about blockchain helps him give a unique perspective to his writing skills, and a reliable craft at explaining the concepts such as blockchain programming, languages ​​and token minting. He also frequently shares technical details and performance indicators of ICOs and IDOs.