The lawsuit between Ripple and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) came to a close on March 19, as Ripple CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, announced with jubilation. The SEC’s decision to withdraw its most recent appeal effectively ended the ongoing legal battle. Stuart Alderoty, Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer, confirmed this while also noting that Ripple had withdrawn its appeal as well.
Interestingly, Ripple was required to pay only $50 million, a significant reduction from the $125 million Judge Torres had ruled or the whopping $2 billion the SEC initially sought. Garlinghouse characterized this as a victory not just for Ripple, but for the entire cryptocurrency sector due to the lawsuit’s significance and duration. But, does it truly reflect that? We consulted several industry professionals to glean their perspective on the closure’s potential ramifications.
Lingling Jiang, a partner at DWF Labs, was generally optimistic about the crypto realm following the lawsuit’s resolution. She highlighted that the dismissal of this prolonged, cornerstone lawsuit of SEC’s battle against crypto signifies a defining moment for Ripple and the whole sector. She perceives this as the start of a comprehensive process that will ultimately lead to enhanced regulatory transparency in the U.S., thereby fostering institutional trust and spurring innovation.
Jiang suggested that Ripple, now unburdened by the lawsuit, can concentrate on enhancing its brand, business, technology, and products, including its newly introduced stablecoin. She deems this as a symbol of significant progress in establishing legitimacy and institutional acceptance within the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
Similarly, Andrei Grachev, a managing partner at Falcon Finance, sees a promising future for U.S.-based digital asset projects. He pointed out that Ripple’s legal clarity, along with Coinbase’s rumored acquisition of Deribit and other U.S.-based developments, signal an incredibly optimistic future for synthetic dollar protocols. He believes that the possible acquisition of Deribit by a regulated, U.S.-compliant Coinbase could speed up the legitimization of on-chain synthetic dollar markets.
Grachev argues that with enhanced market structure and restored faith in regulatory clarity, innovation and adoption in synthetic dollar protocols are likely to skyrocket, particularly in areas craving for stable, censorship-resistant value transfer.
