Ripple responded to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), accusing it of creating more uncertainty and of failing in its duty to protect the encryption community. In criticizing the SEC’s decision to designate its XRP token as a security, the company claims that the regulator’s lawsuit against it amounts to an attack on the entire crypto market in the United States.
Affected XRP token holders
The most recent comments from the Ripple team follow reports of the closure of the XRP token by Coinbase. In a short statement released on December 29, the company, which is promising another “response in a few weeks to address these unproven allegations against Ripple,” begins by claiming that the public and the media are currently only aware of the SEC’s narrative.
The Ripple team then attacks the SEC’s $ 1.3 billion lawsuit against the company, arguing that it affected “innocent XRP retailers”. Since the announcement of the process, the XRP token has lost more than 50% of its value and the trend should continue as more exchanges remove the token. The Ripple statement explains:
We have always said that there is a dangerous lack of regulatory clarity for cryptography in the U.S. – the process has already affected countless innocent XRP holders with no connection to Ripple. It also unnecessarily muddied the waters for exchanges, market makers and traders.
Ripple customers outside the US
Meanwhile, the Ripple team, whose executives have already threatened to leave the United States, is also reiterating the claim that the token is mainly marketed outside that country.
“The majority of our customers are not in the USA and the overall volume of XRP is widely marketed outside the USA. There are clear rules for using XRP in the UK, Japan, Switzerland and Singapore, for example, ”says the Ripple Declaration.
Meanwhile, the Ripple team says it is prepared to defend itself in court, although the statement suggests that the company is also pinning its hopes on the SEC’s leadership. Jay Clayton’s term led the SEC board, which made the decision to file the suit against Ripple, recently closed. After Clayton left, attorney Elad Roisman was appointed acting president.
New SEC Board unlikely to change course
However, others, like lawyer Jake Chervinsky, say the odds are still against Ripple’s victory, despite changes in the board. In a Twitter post, Chervinsky says:
It is extremely unlikely that the changes in the SEC’s leadership will have any impact on the Ripple case. Given the conspicuous silence of com’r Peirce, I think the vote was unanimous in favor of the action. Regardless, the case is being processed by lawyers who are here to stay.
Interestingly, although the SEC has already decided that bitcoin and ethereum are not bonds, that hasn’t stopped bitcoin opponents like Peter Schiff from feeding the idea. In his last speech against bitcoin, Schiff weighs in the Ripple / XRP disaster asking what would happen if the SEC similarly designated bitcoin as a security.
Do you think the recent changes to the SEC will impact the outcome of this case? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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