Ripple CEO Says It is Happening Again for XRP

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse expresses optimism about Canary Capital’s filing with the U.S. SEC for a spot XRP ETF. 

Canary Capital, a crypto investment company, sent ripples within the crypto scene after it submitted an S-1 application to the SEC for a spot-based XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF). 

Canary XRP ETF 

In an S-1 registration statement filed yesterday, Canary noted that its XRP ETF, if approved, would give investors exposure to the seventh-biggest cryptocurrency by market cap while eliminating the risks of directly purchasing or holding the asset.

Per the filing, the net asset value (NAV) of the XRP ETF will be determined based on the CME CF Ripple – Dollar Reference Rate. While Canary Capital will sponsor and manage the XRP ETF, leading capital market firm CSC Delaware Trust Company will be the fund’s trustee. At the time of the filing, Canary did not disclose the name of the custodian or administrator of the ETF. 

Ripple CEO Reacts 

Notably, Ripple’s CEO expressed optimism about Canary’s move to introduce a spot-based XRP ETF in the United States. Reacting to the development, Garlinghouse tweeted a GIF stating that “it is happening again.” 

https://t.co/h6etwkp59c pic.twitter.com/1WiBNcIo7H

— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) October 8, 2024

The comment suggests that another company has filed with the SEC to launch an XRP ETF in the United States. Since the SEC approved multiple Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs, Garlinghouse has always been optimistic about XRP getting a similar product.  

For him, XRP is bound to get a spot-based ETF. He emphasized that it is only a matter of time before this financial product will launch in the U.S. A few months after Garlinghouse’s assertion, two companies have submitted S-1 registration statements to the SEC to launch XRP spot ETFs.   

Growing Confidence in XRP 

Notably, on October 1, crypto asset manager Bitwise submitted an S-1 registration statement with the SEC for a spot-based XRP ETF. 

Meanwhile, Canary’s XRP ETF filing comes days after the SEC filed a notice of appeal to challenge the Ripple ruling. 

Although the SEC has not officially filed its appeal brief, speculation suggests that the regulator aims to overturn Judge Analisa Torres’ decision on programmatic sales and other distributions of XRP, which were ruled in Ripple’s favor. 

XRP Non-Security Status Is Sacrosanct 

In the meantime, Ripple is confident that XRP remains a non-security, as Judge Torres declared in July 2023. The company, through Garlinghouse, emphasized that the decision remains the law of the land, irrespective of the SEC’s appeal.

The SEC is not interested in challenging XRP’s non-security status, as seen during its initial attempt to appeal the Ripple judgment last year. 

As reported earlier, the regulator admitted that digital currencies, including XRP, are not inherently securities. It stated that these assets are “nothing but computer code.” 

Despite not seeking an appellate review on XRP’s non-security status, it is unclear whether the SEC would approve Canary and Bitwise ETF applications, given that the commission is looking to appeal the Ripple judgment.