SEC Drops Ripple Case, Marking Major Win for XRP and Industry

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s multi-year lawsuit against Ripple Labs – one of the most closely watched crypto legal battles – ended abruptly this week. Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced that the SEC will “drop its appeal” in the case over XRP token sales, effectively concluding a four-year fight that began in 2020. The outcome cements a July 2023 court ruling that XRP is not inherently a security, a decision hailed as a landmark precedent for the crypto industry.

• Case Concludes: The SEC is abandoning its appeal in the Ripple lawsuit, ending the long-running case.
• XRP Not a Security: A prior court ruling stands that XRP itself is not a security; it depends on how the asset is sold.
• Background: The SEC originally sued Ripple in 2020 over ~$1.3 billion in unregistered XRP sales, but Ripple prevailed on key arguments in court.

Ripple and its supporters are celebrating the legal victory. Garlinghouse called the outcome a “resounding victory for Ripple [and] for crypto” on social media, framing it as the start of a “new chapter” for the industry. The resolution of this case is widely seen as a positive signal for crypto, although experts note that the U.S. still lacks clear regulatory frameworks for digital assets. For now, the end of the Ripple saga provides relief and clearer precedent, even if broader crypto regulations remain a work in progress.