Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse expects an “answer in the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s suit against his crypto payments company, Ripple Labs Inc., by the first half of next year.
“I think we’ll have an answer in the first half of next year,” Garlinghouse said during an event for DC Fintech Week. “Whether that’s the first quarter or second quarter, we shall see.”
The SEC sued Ripple in 2020. The regulator alleges that Ripple and its top executives misled XRP investors because it failed to register the digital asset as a security and did not provide adequate disclosure. The suit has carried on into late 2022 and looks like it will continue into the beginning of 2023.
However, the tides have begun to turn in favor of Ripple over the past month. A Judge of the Federal Court ordered the SEC to turn over Hinman Documents in the ongoing Ripple case at the beginning of October. The SEC previously objected to the order back in July, but the objection was overruled. The ruling was seen as a major win for Ripple and its supporters in the case. However, the case remains far from over.
Ripple would consider a settlement with the SEC if the regulator states that XRP is not a security, Garlinghouse also said Tuesday. The case “is about the whole industry,” he adds. “Everyone acknowledges how important this is.”
XRP is the sixth-largest cryptocurrency, with a market value of about $25 billion. The token fell about 5% to 49 cents on Tuesday and is down around 40% overall this year.