Attorney Says US SEC Not Ready Yet

Attorney John Deaton, who represents the thousands of XRP token holders in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit against Ripple, explained the possible circumstances under which the federal regulatory agency would come forward to settle with the company. The agency had in July 2023 faced a partial defeat with US Judge Analisa Torres ruling that the XRP token is not, in and of itself, a security.

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“US SEC Not Ready To Settle”

Speaking in a Twitter space, attorney Deaton said the US SEC will only come forward to settle if and only it does not impact the other crypto lawsuits like the one ongoing against US based crypto exchange Coinbase. On the other side, the settlement negotiations would involve XRP sale to the institutional customers, which Judge Torres said were unregistered securities offerings.

A settlement with Ripple would mean the Commission agreeing to grant XRP the status of not being a security, which would in turn trigger its own position in the Coinbase Vs SEC lawsuit, Deaton explained. In June 2023, the SEC alleged that Coinbase had been operating as an unregistered national securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency. The agency also charged the exchange with violation over failing to register the offer and sale of its crypto asset staking as a service program.

Ripple CEO: Don’t Have To Bow Down To SEC

Earlier on September 20, 2023, Ripple chief executive officer Brad Garlinghouse said during the Mainnet 2023 event that there was no need to bow down to the US SEC when it comes to the way it deals with the crypto ecosystem. Referring to the defeat of US SEC Chair Gary Gensler with the Summary Judgment ruling, Garlinghouse said,