The longstanding Ripple v. SEC case appears to be over, per Ripple Labs Chief Executive Officer Brad Garlinghouse. After an appeal against the original 2023 ruling in Ripple’s favor that went on to proceed at a truly glacial pace, the legal battle is now over, per the CEO’s March 19 X post.
This is it – the moment we’ve been waiting for. The SEC will drop its appeal – a resounding victory for Ripple, for crypto, every way you look at it. The future is bright. Let’s build.
In the immediate aftermath of the announcement, XRP prices surged from $2.31 to $2.55. By press time on March 20, the digital asset’s price had receded back to $2.45, bringing year-to-date (YTD) returns to 15.61%.
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Understandably, reactions from the cryptocurrency community have been overwhelmingly positive. With the landmark case concluded, let’s take a quick look at how the digital asset is faring, and what its future prospects now look like.
Can XRP’s bullish momentum continue?
Despite the small pullback that we noted, the odds of the token continuing on an upward trajectory appear to be rather high. While some market commentators were initially worried that a protracted legal battle could depress XRP prices, the case being dropped could end up starting a virtuous cycle as investors regain confidence in the wider market.
The number of XRP addresses recently reached 7 million. In tandem with this, despite inflationary pressure from the asset’s escrow schedule, whales proved quite willing to absorb the added supply, thus preventing a move to the downside.
Moreover, OpenAI’s latest and most powerful large language model (LLM), ChatGPT 4.5, predicted that the token’s price will reach either $4.01 or $3.16, depending on market dynamics, by April 1. Elsewhere, noted technical analyst Gert van Lagen shared a long-term analysis with a $38 price target that he referred to as conservative.
While macroeconomic factors will certainly continue to play an important role going forward, XRP, which has proven more resilient than rivals and peers in terms of price action, seems to be among the digital assets with the best odds of seeing significant moves to the upside.
A final note on the Ripple v. SEC case
One interesting detail remains — as covered by numerous reputable outlets, the SEC has not, as of the time of writing on March 20, issued a public statement confirming that the Ripple v. SEC case has, in fact, been dropped. Per the coverage from these sources, the regulatory body declined to comment on the matter.
So — should XRP holders worry? In all probability, no. Despite what we’ve just outlined, the odds of Garlinghouse, an industry veteran who maintains a close rapport with the President of the United States having spoken too early or attempted to force the SEC’s hand with his statement is minuscule, to say the least.
Any resolution to the case other than the one Garlinghouse has described would also constitute a stark departure from the commission’s recent actions.
The likeliest explanation is that an agreement has indeed been reached. As reported by Fox Business journalist Eleanor Terrett in a March 12 X post, the SEC and Ripple could still be ironing out the finer details of the case, which will undoubtedly have an ongoing effect on cryptocurrency regulations in the United States.
My understanding is that the delay in reaching an agreement is due to Ripple’s legal team negotiating more favorable terms regarding the August district court ruling, which imposed a $125M fine on the company and included a permanent injunction preventing the company from selling XRP to institutional investors.
Readers should keep an eye out for official comments regarding the Ripple v. SEC case as they will most likely provide additional clarity.
Featured image via Shutterstock
