SEC will drop its appeal against Ripple, CEO Garlinghouse says (Coin Telegraph)

Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will drop its appeal in the lawsuit it’s been pursuing against the firm for the past four years. The SEC sued the company over an alleged $1.3 billion unregistered securities offering in December 2020. In 2023 Federal district judge Analisa Torres ruled that programmatic sales to public buyers and distributions of XRP to Ripple Labs employees did not constitute the sale of unregistered securities. However, she concluded that Ripple’s institutional sales of XRP constituted the unregistered offer and sale of investment contracts in violation of Section 5 of the Securities Act. In August 2024 she ordered Ripple to pay a $125 million fine which was significantly less than the $2 billion sought by the SEC. Hence, in October 2024 SEC filed a notice of appeal that has been hanging over Ripple’s head until possibly now. In any case, it may take several weeks for the case to be officially withdrawn because any decision will have to be subject to Commission vote and approval. [Read more on X]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

• The Crypto Assets Conference (Frankfurt, March 26) will delve into the advancements in digital assets, tokenization, crypto assets, web3, and more, through insightful talks, interactive debates, and presentations by industry experts, founders, investors, and representatives from public institutions. [Register here and get a 10% discount]
• The Digital Euro Conference 2025 (Frankfurt, March 27) will explore the future of money with a focus on CBDCs, stablecoins, tokenized deposits, and the intersection of AI and digital ID. When you register, get 20% off the regular ticket price by using the Kiffmeister20 code! [Register here]

And just a reminder that I produce a monthly digest of central bank digital currency (CBDC) developments exclusively for the official sector. So (only) if you work at a central bank, ministry of finance or international financial institution (e.g., the BIS, IMF, OECD, World Bank) and who would like to receive it by email on the first business day of every month, please DM me on LinkedIn or email me at john@kiffmeister.com.