SEC Appeals XRP Lawsuit Close to Deadline!

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has submitted Form-C with detailed appeal on October 17. Social media was filled with speculations if the SEC has missed the deadline. We unveiled in yesterday’s news that it was not the case. As the appeal is now officially submitted, what does it mean for the Ripple Vs Sec case, let’s find out.

Ripple’s Victory Could Be Short-Lived

Judge Analisa Torres ruled in July 2023 that the sale of XRP token by Ripple to retail investors is not security. However, the institutional sales did indeed count as security. On August 7, this year, keeping her previous decision she put a civil fine of $125 million on Ripple Labs. The SEC wanted the court to take all XRP sales under securities law and put a $2 billion fine on the crypto firm. This did not go as planned and Judge Torres rejected it. This was a major setback for the SEC. 

The Last Minute Action of the SEC

The Commission submitted their appeal notice very close to the deadline earlier and now they did the same with the Form-C submission. Their appeal doesn’t question XRP’s retail sales. Instead, they’re focusing on Ripple’s offers and sales on digital platforms, and personal sales by Ripple executives. These areas, according to the SEC, should still be considered securities violations. The appeal also challenges the court’s decision that XRP given out for non-cash consideration didn’t break any laws.

What’s interesting is that the appeal will be reviewed de novo, meaning the appellate court will look at the legal issues from scratch. This allows for a fresh interpretation of the securities laws in question. Ripple’s fight is far from over, but the retail victory remains untouched, at least for now.

Response From Ripple

Stuart Alderoty, the Chief Legal Officer at Ripple wrote on social media platform X that it is clear once again that XRP is not a security. He also asked the community to keep watching the case as Ripple will file their Form C in the upcoming week.

What to Expect

This latest SEC move adds more uncertainty to Ripple’s journey. The crypto community is keeping a close watch, especially since there’s confusion over the SEC’s filing dates. Did the SEC miss its filing window? Some argue they did, but others aren’t so sure. Either way, Ripple and the SEC are set for more legal battles, and the outcome could shape how cryptocurrencies are regulated in the future.