The ongoing legal battle between Ripple Labs Inc. and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) could end this week with a settlement between the two parties as the SEC has scheduled a closed-door meeting for Thursday, July 18, 2024.
Ripple vs. SEC Settlement This Week?
Brett Hill, an ambassador for the crypto exchange Bitrue, excited the fires of speculation were stoked with a post on X. Hill’s tweet, which was accompanied by a screenshot of an SEC announcement, which read: “BOOOOOOOM! private executive meeting at their Washington HQ for this Thursday (July 18-24)! Reliable sources have informed us that this meeting is related to the Ripple vs SEC resolutions and the conclusion of the lawsuit! #XRP.”
Notably, the SEC’s official announcement details the logistics and nature of the meeting, but does not specifically mention the Ripple case. However, the topics listed for discussion include “Institution and Settlement of Interim Measures,” “Institution and Settlement of Administrative Proceedings,” and “Resolution of Litigation.” Such topics suggest that the meeting could indeed include significant developments in the Ripple case.
The notice indicates that the meeting will be held at the Commission’s headquarters in Washington, DC, but that remote participation is also possible. The meeting’s nonpublic status is based on the General Counsel’s certification that the discussion falls within several exemptions under 5 USC 552b(c) and 17 CFR 200.402(a). These exemptions relate to matters such as privacy (c)(6), law enforcement proceedings (c)(7), financial or commercial information (c)(4), and internal personnel policies and practices (c)(2).
This indicates the sensitivity of the discussions, which are likely to relate to ongoing enforcement actions, which in this context could very well include the Ripple lawsuit. The announcement also provides transparency on potential changes to the timeline, with updates promised on the SEC’s official website, indicating the fluid nature of such enforcement discussions.
The SEC is currently seeking a $102.6 million fine from Ripple, a significant reduction from the nearly $2 billion originally sought. In defense, Ripple suggested a $10 million penalty cap, drawing parallels to the resolution of the Terraform Labs case. However, the SEC rejected this proposal in its response brief, arguing that such a nominal amount would not be consistent with the intent of the civil penalty laws.
It is worth noting that some pro-XRP advocates assigned the case has a fairly low chance of settlement. Fred Rispoli, founder of Hodl Law, recently commented on this, stating that “pre-verdict settlement is unlikely, although some unresolved issues may still be negotiable.”
At the time of writing, XRP was trading at $0.53.
Main image created with DALL·E, chart from TradingView.com