Al twee jaar is de Amerikaanse Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) verwikkeld in een juridische strijd met Ripple Labs. Op 22 december 2020 diende de SEC een rechtszaak in, bij een federaal districtshof in Manhattan, tegen Ripple Labs voor het aantrekken van ongeveer $1,4 billion aan fondsen met behulp van XRP als digitaal activum in een Initial Public Offering (IPO) uit 2013. De rechtszaak beweerde dat Chris Larsen, medeoprichter van Ripple Labs, en Brad Garlinghouse, de huidige CEO van Ripple, ook persoonlijke niet‑geregistreerde verkopen van XRP maakten ter waarde van ongeveer $600 million. De SEC beschuldigde de verdachten van het schenden van de registratiebepalingen van de Securities Act van 1993. De SEC verwees naar de Howey‑test – een zaak van het Amerikaanse Hooggerechtshof om te bepalen of een transactie kwalificeert als een investeringscontract en dus zou worden beschouwd als een effect dat onder de registratieplicht van de Securities Act van 1933 valt – om Ripple’s schending van de Securities Act aan te tonen.

De SEC beweerde ook dat XRP een niet‑geregistreerd effect is omdat sinds 2013 het enige nut van XRP een investeringscontract is geweest. Het geschil leidde tot het delisteren van XRP op Coinbase en andere beurzen – voornamelijk Amerikaanse beurzen.

Following the lawsuit, Ripple, however, went all the way with the SEC into a legal brawl instead of opting to negotiate a settlement. The main bone of contention in the litigation has been, is XRP a security? In the latest update, crypto law experts who spoke with Forbes relayed key facts about the case, discredited the Howey Test, and suggested that the SEC is likely to lose the case.

Ripple vs. SEC, de juridische tijdlijn

The case has taken a few turns over the past two years. Ripple has presented a series of arguments that have made it difficult for the SEC to have an easy win in the litigation; as a matter of fact, Ripple’s arguments have brought some twists into the case by which Ripple has been regarded by proponents as the favored party likely to win the litigation.

Ripple’s first argument in the early days of the legal brawl was that it never received any warning or fair notice from the SEC regarding XRP being a security. The SEC filed a motion to strike Ripple’s fair notice defense claiming the defense was legally insufficient and would lead the defendant to seek “intrusive discovery”; the court ruled against the motion.

Wat verbergt de SEC?

Ripple’s following argument in court was based on a speech made by William Hinman, the then director of Corporation Finance at the SEC, at the 2018 Yahoo Finance All Markets Summit. Hinman declared that despite Ethereum’s 2014 initial Coin Offering (ICO), ETH is not considered a security by the SEC. In court, the SEC disclaimed Hinman’s declaration and argued that Hinman’s speech was his personal opinion and did not represent that of the SEC. However, Hinman was a member of the SEC leadership around the time the SEC filed the lawsuit against Ripple. In defense, Ripple demanded that the SEC also release the emails, memos and other documents to give a better view of how the SEC viewed cryptocurrencies and digital assets internally; the SEC rejected the demand and filed an appeal to a judge’s order to comply with Ripple’s demand.

Very recently, Ripple obtained the long-sought Hinman documents. Stuart Alderoty, Ripple’s general counsel, tweeted in celebration over the collection of Hinman’s documents. In his celebratory tweet, Alderoty said it was worth the fight to get hold of the documents.

Following the news that Ripple was now in possession of the Hinman documents, positive momentum has been building for XRP. The XRP community, popularly known as the XRPArmy on Crypto Twitter have had some XRP-related hashtag trends. One of the trending hashtags has been #relistXRP. The hashtag has been a call for crypto exchanges – especially Coinbase – who delisted XRP because of the SEC litigation to consider relisting the cryptocurrency. The XRPArmy seems confident that the final ruling will go in Ripple’s favor as one vital “weapon” in Ripple’s legal arsenal has been obtained.

Steun voor Ripple

The XRPArmy support for Ripple has been unwavering for the past two years. A group of XRP holders once showed an interest in participating in the court proceedings and aiding Ripple by providing information in court. The SEC filed an objection against the move.

Some firms that use Ripple’s suite of products have also shown interest in supporting Ripple in court proceedings. In early October, I-Remit, a payment provider, and TapJet, a private charter jet company, were granted permission by a US District Judge to file amicus briefs in favor of Ripple in the ongoing case. The SEC once again objected and asked the court not to grant permission. The SEC criticized the movers of the motion for seeking materials beyond the scope of discovery limitations. I-Remit and TapJet use XRP and the XRP ledger in their business operations.

Despite the SEC’s objection to third-party support for Ripple in court, the general support for Ripple in the crypto community has not waned. In a very recent show of solidarity, the crypto lobbyist group Blockchain Association has filed for permission to support Ripple as a friend of the court in the ongoing SEC legal brawl. Blockchain Association, in a released announcement, on its website said that the SEC-Ripple case is just one in a long line of SEC efforts to legitimize its overly broad interpretation of the Howey Test.

Wat te verwachten als een van beide partijen de rechtszaak wint

The SEC-Ripple case has been seen as the case that could make or break the crypto space. On the one hand, a Ripple win in the lawsuit will most likely cause a huge XRP price rally; even if an immediate price outbreak does not occur, there will likely be steady small spikes for months as confidence in Ripple and XRP will be restored; XRP will also be relisted on US-based exchanges where it was previously delisted. A Ripple win will give the crypto community a clear definition of what types of coins and tokens can be regarded as securities. A Ripple win will be a humiliation for the SEC.

On the other hand, if the SEC wins the case, it will spell trouble for many other crypto projects and exchanges. The SEC will likely clamp down on other crypto projects that it deems it could bring under its laws. The general sentiment in the crypto community will not be a positive one.

The SEC-Ripple case is expected to carry on into 2023. Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse has said that he expects an answer in the SEC suit by the first half of 2023.