In an interview with CNBC, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse revealed to feels optimistic about the company’s future and its legal battle. The payment solution company was sued by the U.S. Securities And Exchange Commission (SEC) in 2019 for the alleged illegal sales of a security, XRP.
Initially, the battle was expected to be an easy win for the regulators. This had a negative impact on the price of XRP, the cryptocurrency that powers the XRP Ledger, and some of the products from the payment company.
However, Ripple has been using its resources and appears to be turning the table in its favor. In court, the payment solution company has presented evidence that claims the SEC was made aware of XRP, and Ripple’s business model with the cryptocurrency using a product called Ripple Network.
The evidence goes as back as 2013 and includes documents that suggest the SEC failed to provide clarity over the digital asset’s classification as a security. According to legal experts, the evidence could demonstrate to the court that Ripple was actively seeking to remain compliant with U.S. securities law.
In that sense, Garlinghouse told CNBC the following on his perception of the status of the case:
The lawsuit has gone exceedingly well, and much better than I could have hoped when it began about 15 months ago. But the wheels of justice move slowly.
Other evidence has come to light that could continue to favor Ripple. As highlighted by CNBC, the judge handling the case ruled against the SEC editing emails about how it has treated XRP and other cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum.
The second crypto by market cap, there are currently no standing cases against it as it is not deemed a security. If Ripple can successfully argue that XRP and ETH operate as decentralized cryptocurrencies, could score a win in its legal pursuit.
Ripple Touched Bottom, Only Up From Here?
Despite the legal battle, Ripple has not seen a slowdown in its operations. According to its CEO, the company is “already operating in the worst-case scenario”, but registers “record growth” outside of the United States.
On the other hand, the XRP token records a 7% profit in the last 24-hours potentially as a reaction to Garlinghouse’s statements. The market seems to be positively pricing any development around the legal case with the SEC, but the macro-economic outlook still seems unfavorable for risk-on assets.
On higher timeframes, the token still trends to the downside far from its $2 high in 2021. A positive conclusion of the case could send XRP to those highs.
XRP trends to the downside on the daily chart. Source: XRPUSD Tradingview
Garlinghouse added the following on the importance of Ripple’s case for the crypto industry:
This case is important, not just for Ripple; it’s important for the entire crypto industry in the United States. It would really be negative for crypto in the United States (…). If you determine XRP as a security of Ripple, we have to know every person that owns XRP. That’s an SEC requirement. You have to know all of your shareholders. It’s not possible.
