Ripple vs. SEC: 5-Year Legal Battle Nears Climax as Both Sides Push to End Litigation

After half a decade of courtroom drama, Ripple and the SEC are finally throwing in the towel—or at least trying to.

The crypto giant and its regulatory nemesis filed joint motions to dismiss remaining claims, signaling a potential ceasefire in one of the industry's most-watched legal wars.

Who won? Depends who you ask—but lawyers on both sides definitely cashed in.

Ripple and the SEC move to end litigation

According to court documents submitted to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the parties “reached an agreement-in-principle, subject to Commission approval, to resolve the underlying case.”

The case had been on appeal after a final order from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (No. 20-cv-10832), which gave Ripple a partial win in 2023 by stating that XRP was not a security in secondary market sales.

The joint dismissal had signatures from attorneys representing Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse, Christian A. Larsen, and the SEC, confirming that Ripple and its executives authorized the agency to file the stipulation with their signatures included.

It is a fitting end to a tumultuous lawsuit that has lasted five years and had huge implications on the industry.

Now that the appeals have been withdrawn, Ripple is cleared of any further federal litigation linked to XRP’s regulatory status. The decision is expected to influence how other tokens are treated under U.S. securities law, especially as lawmakers continue to hash out crypto regulation frameworks.

What’s next for XRP following the dismissal?

The conclusion of Ripple’s case with the SEC is bullish news. Following the resolution announcement, the XRP token surged in value, crossing the $3 mark, proof of growing investor optimism.

According to data from Glassnode, over 80% of XRP’s supply is in wallets that have not been touched for over a year, evidence of strong holding conviction.

Long-term holders are already in profit, and short-term holders have been cautiously loading up in anticipation of XRP ripping higher.

Another possible catalyst for XRP’s great price action movement is the use case that it has in Japan where Aplus, a credit card firm owned by Shinsei Bank, has partnered with SBI VC Trade to allow customers to convert their reward points into XRP, Bitcoin, and Ethereum.

The token price is currently hovering around $3.27, but going by the bullish sentiments on X since the end of the SEC’s case against Ripple, XRP may be touching new heights soon.

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