- The US SEC has officially dropped its XRP lawsuit against Ripple Labs.
- XRP price is in rebound mode following the news but with a generally tempered outlook.
American blockchain payments firm Ripple Labs Inc is now free from the damning lawsuit filed against it in December 2020 by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In a video update shared on X by the firm’s CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, he said the case is now officially over. This landmark win has rattled the broader crypto ecosystem as the Ripple versus SEC case is considered the biggest in the industry.
Major Precedent With XRP Lawsuit
As Garlinghouse noted in his X update, the lawsuit against the firm is the first major blow to a crypto player in the industry. He shared a post from August 31, 2021, in which he noted that the SEC’s lawsuit marks a shift in “impossible fair standards of fair notice and due process.”
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. pic.twitter.com/7WsD0C92Cm
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) March 19, 2025
He and legal experts admitted that the case was doomed from the start. However, the lawsuit lingered for years, and millions were spent on it. From the time the lawsuit was filed to the present day, a major shift and compromise have been recorded in the case.
Initially, the markets regulator claimed the sales of XRP to institutional investors and retail traders constitute an investment contract. However, as we mentioned in our previous news brief, Judge Analisa Torres gave a split ruling in a June 2023 ruling. At the time, the Judge said the sales of XRP on exchanges did not constitute an investment contract. However, the sales to institutional investors violated Federal securities laws.
Ripple Labs was fined $125 million for the part it violated. While the case should end there, the Gary Gensler-led SEC filed an appeal, as noted in our earlier report. With the latest turn of events, Ripple Labs is now in the clear, setting a precedent for related enforcement cases in the future.
XRP In the Clear, Price Soar 13%
The Donald Trump administration has proven to showcase a softer stance on the crypto market, with lawsuits against Coinbase and other top firms now closed. However, the Ripple update marks the biggest bullish catalyst for the XRP price thus far this week.
After a brief stint of volatility thus far this month, XRP price has not jumped by over 13% in the past 24 hours to $2.523. The coin has jumped from a low price of $2.226 to a high of $2.562 within this period.
Before the lawsuit’s resolution was announced, XRP proponents predicted massive rallies that may push the coin to $10 or more. However, current market realities show a tempered growth trend, proof of the uncertainty in the broader digital currency ecosystem.
The drop in the Ripple lawsuit officially validated the pro-crypto shift in the US SEC. Garlinghouse and other market leaders consider this a win for the industry.
