The ongoing legal battle between Ripple Labs Inc. and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) could end this week with a settlement between the two parties as the SEC has scheduled a closed-door meeting for Thursday, July 18, 2024.
Ripple vs. SEC: A Deal This Week?
Brett Hill, ambassador of crypto exchange Bitrue, excited The speculation started with a tweet from X. Hill, accompanied by a screenshot of an SEC announcement: “BOOOOOOOM! Private Executive Meeting at their Washington HQ for this Thursday (July 18-24)! Reliable sources have informed us that this meeting is related to the Ripple vs. SEC resolutions and the finalization of the court case! #XRP.”
The SEC’s official announcement details the logistics and nature of the meeting, but does not specifically mention the Ripple case. However, topics of discussion include “instituting and settling injunctive relief,” “instituting and settling administrative proceedings,” and “dispute resolution.” Such topics suggest that the meeting could indeed involve significant developments in the Ripple case.
The announcement states that the meeting will be held at the Commission’s headquarters in Washington, DC, but that remote participation is also possible. The nonpublic status of the meeting is based on the legal counsel’s certification that the discussion falls within several exemptions under 5 USC 552b(c) and 17 CFR 200.402(a). These exemptions relate to issues such as confidentiality (c)(6), law enforcement proceedings (c)(7), financial or business information (c)(4), and internal staff rules and practices (c)(2).
This indicates the sensitivity of the discussions, which likely concern ongoing enforcement actions, which in this context could very well include the Ripple litigation. The announcement also provides transparency regarding potential changes in the timeline, with updates promised on the SEC’s official website, indicating the fluid nature of these enforcement discussions.
The SEC is currently while searching a $102.6 million penalty from Ripple, a significant decrease from the nearly $2 billion initially sought. In its defense, Ripple has propose a $10 million penalty cap, drawing parallels to the resolution of the Terraform Labs case. However, the SEC rejected this proposal in its response brief, arguing that such a symbolic amount would not be consistent with the purpose of civil penalty laws.
It should be noted that some pro-XRP advocates have assigned The case is unlikely to result in a settlement. Fred Rispoli, founder of Hodl Law, recently commented on the situation and said that “a pre-trial settlement is unlikely, although some unresolved arguments could still be negotiated.”
At press time, XRP was trading at $0.53.
Featured image created with DALL·E, chart by TradingView.com
