DeutschThe ongoing legal battle between Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is as much a part of crypto history as the Bitcoin halving or the Mt. Gox scandal. What began as a classic lawsuit by the authorities has developed over the years into a lesson about regulation, decentralization and the question of what is actually a security in the digital financial world and what is not.
A case that reads like a crime novel, only without a murderer, but with a pile of money and the question of whether it can all just be over at some point.
How Ripple Came into the SEC’s Sights
It all started at the end of 2020. The SEC, otherwise known for dry annual reports and an even drier demeanor, surprisingly pulled out the big guns and sued Ripple Labs. The accusation is that the sale of XRP tokens was an unregistered sale of securities.
Ripple itself, on the other hand, never saw itself as an issuer of classic securities. XRP is not an investment contract, it said, but a digital asset with real benefits, especially for international payments. An argument that is often heard in the crypto scene. The SEC saw it differently. For them, XRP was nothing more than an asset with a speculative character, which belongs in the same regulatory drawers as stocks or bonds. Above all, however, the whole thing had been running for years without the necessary registration.
The fronts were therefore hardened early on. The SEC wanted to make an example and Ripple fought for its business model and in the middle is the XRP token.
The Great Sigh of Relief in the Summer of 2023
In July 2023, the great legal thunderclap followed, because a US district court ruled that the sale of XRP to private investors via exchanges did not violate securities laws. The crypto community cheered. Ripple spoke of a “great victory”. The XRP rate shot upwards. For a short time, it seemed as if the drama was over like a blockbuster with a happy ending.
But anyone who thought that this was the end of the chapter had not read the fine print. Although the court had declared XRP sales to private investors to be unproblematic, it had classified institutional sales in other channels as securities transactions. So the SEC lost in part, but not everywhere, and it was not prepared to accept this as the finale. The decision was a partial victory, nothing more, and at the latest when the SEC filed an appeal, it was clear that the story would get at least a few more seasons.
Million-dollar Fine, but No Final Line
In the fall of 2023, the next twist, because Ripple and the SEC agreed on a payment of around 50 million US dollars. That sounded like a deal. An expensive one, but still cheaper than the 125 million US dollar fine that the SEC originally demanded.
But the reality is a little more complicated, because the penalty only related to institutional sales. All other open questions, especially about fundamental regulatory decisions, remained unaffected.
And the exact mode of repayment also raised new questions, such as which investors receive how much back? In what period and according to what system? In addition, the market reacted cautiously. XRP showed fluctuations, but a sustained price impulse failed to materialize. The mistrust that the legal aftermath was really over was apparently too great.
Why the Dispute is Escalating Again
Hardly had the agreement been reached, the dispute went into the next round. In the spring of 2025, Judge Torres rejected a motion to terminate the proceedings. The reason is that the settlement application is “procedurally inadmissible”. This means that Ripple remains in the legal crosshairs, even if the really big conflict seems to have been settled.
The SEC, in turn, does not want to show any weakness. It uses every opportunity to point out open construction sites and Ripple is combative, publicly self-confident, but legally not yet out of the line of fire. It is a dance on thin ice, in which no one really knows who will break in at the end.
What the Process Means for Crypto Regulation
The Ripple case has long had an impact beyond its own company. It has become a symbol of the unclear situation surrounding crypto regulation in the USA. While the SEC continues to try to classify as many tokens as possible as securities, the industry insists on more legal clarity and less legal arbitrariness.
It is particularly explosive that Ripple was one of the first major cases in which the question of the nature of a token was publicly negotiated, i.e. not only how a project works, but what it actually is from a regulatory perspective. Since then, there has been uncertainty in many crypto companies. Could our token also be a security? Do you have to hedge? Or better to move abroad right away?
For the SEC, it’s about more than just XRP. It wants to create a precedent that will serve as a benchmark for future projects. Whether this succeeds remains to be seen. But the Ripple case has made the fronts clear and increased the pressure on US politics to finally create binding legal frameworks.
Ripple Today: a Company between New Beginnings and Old Burdens
has itself developed in the meantime. New cooperations, a stronger focus on international markets and the goal of being taken seriously as an infrastructure player for digital payments. The strategy is to emancipate itself from the XRP token without giving it up, because Ripple is never completely detached from XRP, if only for economic reasons.
But the reputation has suffered. While some celebrate the company as an indomitable pioneer, others accuse it of deliberately exploiting gray areas through its XRP sales. Trust is divided and even if Ripple publicly likes to emphasize how stable its own business model is, the open questions have not been answered.
What Developments are to be Expected
What’s next? The legal formalities surrounding the repayment of the penalty continue. With new deadlines, new hearings and possible follow-up lawsuits, it remains complex. At the same time, the industry is waiting for signals from Washington. Will there soon be a comprehensive crypto law or will the regulatory patchwork remain?
International attention is also being paid. The EU has already presented MiCA, other regions are planning their own legislative packages. The USA could come under pressure to act, not least because of the Ripple case.
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