The price of XRP, the native crypto of Ripple Labs, surged by over 20% on May 18, 2023, after a U.S. District Court judge denied the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) motion to compel Ripple to produce documents related to the unregistered securities offering of XRP.
The SEC filed a lawsuit against Ripple in December 2020, alleging that the company had raised over $1.3 billion through the sale of unregistered securities. Ripple has denied the allegations, arguing that XRP is a currency and not a security.
The judge’s ruling is a major setback for the SEC’s case. The SEC had argued that Ripple’s documents were necessary to prove that the company had engaged in an unregistered securities offering. However, the judge ruled that the SEC had not shown that the documents were relevant to the case.
The ruling is a major victory for Ripple and its CEO Brad Garlinghouse. Garlinghouse has said that the ruling is a “significant step forward” in the case. He has also said that he is confident that Ripple will ultimately win the case.
The surge in XRP’s price is a sign that investors are bullish on the outcome of the case. If Ripple wins the case, it could be a major victory for the cryptocurrency industry. It could also lead to a surge in demand for XRP, as investors would be more confident that the cryptocurrency is not a security.
The SEC has not yet commented on the ruling. The case is still ongoing, and it is possible that the SEC will appeal the ruling. However, the ruling is a major setback for the SEC’s case, and it is a major victory for Ripple.
