Ripple Price and Regulation: What's Going On With XRP?

The price of Ripple (XRP) has been on the rise, reaching $0.40 at the time of writing, even as the wider crypto market remains sluggish. Ripple hasn't exactly had the greatest time over the past month, as the coin dropped by 10% over the last 30 days. This slump in Ripple's value is likely tied up to the general market fallout that followed in the wake of the Silvergate Bank crisis, but there's a reason why Ripple appears to be on the recovery lately.

Will Ripple Beat The SEC?

Ripple is currently engaged in an ongoing legal battle with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The US regulator alleges that the company's sale of its XRP token consisted of an unregistered securities offering of $1.3 billion. The case has become one to watch for the entire crypto community, and here's the good news: it looks like Ripple's coming out on top.

The latest news from the case indicates that the SEC's position is weaker than it thought and that the judge's interpretation appears to be favouring Ripple. Here's what's come to light:

• Judge Analisa Torres has granted Ripple's motion to exclude testimony from Patrick Doody, an  "expert witness" called by the SEC. Doody was slated to provide an analysis based on what the "average XRP purchaser" would have expected from their investment in Ripple, but after Doody's expertise was called into question by Ripple's witnesses, the court ruled to exclude Doody from the case.
• Judge Torres has also denied the SEC's motion to revoke the amicus status of famous XRP advocate John E. Deaton, allowing the blockchain enthusiast lawyer to present testimony as a friend of the court.

These developments are two serious strikes against the SEC and indicate that the eventual judgement will likely be in favour of Ripple, allowing the company to continue business as usual and boosting the strength of XRP. The SEC case relies on proving the assumption that XRP buyers necessarily expected a profit, as is the case with securities, whereas Ripple has always maintained that XRP is a digital currency.

Ripple's Brad Garlinghouse has estimated that the case is likely to reach a conclusion by the end of the year. The eventual resolution of this legal battle could have far-reaching implications not just for XRP but for cryptocurrency as a whole. Much of the debate surrounding the regulation of cryptocurrencies revolves around how to classify digital assets and, thus, which regulatory agencies would have jurisdiction over them.

Ripple rally imminent?

While the case is not over yet, a positive outcome for Ripple could be a great boost for XRP's value. The coin is tied to the success of Ripple as a business, which has continued to thrive despite the ongoing legal challenge from the SEC, expanding its product around the world. Ripple now provides on-demand liquidity in over 40 countries. In fact, Ripple recently published its Q4 2022 XRP Markets Report, which detailed that the company processed $226.31 million in net XRP sales in that quarter alone. If Ripple triumphs in court and crypto market conditions are favourable, XRP may even rally past its historic all-time high of $3.40.

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