San Francisco-based Ripple said it will defend itself against a lawsuit from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that claims the company violated investor-protection laws when it sold XRP, according to Washington Post on Dec 21.
If the SEC does sue Ripple, the action will follow years of debate between the company and the agency about whether XRP, a digital currency associated with Ripple, is a security, like a share of stock—which must be registered with the agency—or is instead a currency and thus beyond the SEC’s purview. Ripple had a $10 billion valuation in its most recent funding round in 2019, and XRP is the third-largest cryptocurrency by market value, and currently has a market cap of $23 billion.
CEO Brad Garlinghouse said Ripple will fight the case. “It’s not just Grinch-worthy, it’s shocking. It’s an attack on the entire crypto industry and American innovation.”
“I think we have to stand up for all of the cryptocurrency—and not let the SEC bully the entire industry,” said Garlinghouse, adding “We’re going to be on the right side of history.”
“The suit, which hasn’t yet been filed, would be one of the highest-profile SEC actions against a cryptocurrency pioneer, just as the regulator’s chairman is departing at the end of the Trump administration. The SEC over the past few years has brought and mostly won civil lawsuits alleging startups trampled securities laws when they raised money by selling cryptocurrencies,” Washington Post said.
Raoul Pal, Founder, and CEO of Global Macro Investor and Real Vision Group tweeted:
“Well all of you who think XRP is a scam (I have no informed view and no position but suspect not) this is your chance to shine. Short it if you think they are going down as a shitcoin scam”.
XRP’s price is trading at $ 0.482, down 14% over the past 24 hours, but has risen 150% in the past 1 year.
Read more:
- Ripple’s Addresses Have Grown Rapidly But XRP Still In Bearish Territory
- CEO Of Ripple: Bitcoin Price Have Outperformed The Predictions Made By Several Crypto Critics In The Past Years