Federal Judge's Controversial Decision on Ripple's XRP Sales
A federal judge ruled last month that while Ripple's direct sales of XRP to institutional investors violated securities law, its programmatic sales to retail investors through exchanges did not. Judge Analisa Torres of the U.S. Southern District Court tentatively scheduled a trial for other issues that she did not rule on during the motions for judgment for the second quarter of 2024.
SEC's Announcement to File Interlocutory Appeal
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will file an "interlocutory appeal" of a judge's ruling on Ripple's programmatic sales of XRP, the regulator said in a court filing on Wednesday. The SEC is seeking "leave to" appeal part of the recent decision while other parts of the SEC's case proceed to trial, potentially preventing the need for two trials.
Details of the SEC's Appeal Against Ripple's XRP Sales
Specifically, the SEC aims to certify the court's holding that Defendants' 'Programmatic' offers and sales to XRP buyers over crypto asset trading platforms, and Ripple’s 'Other Distributions' in exchange for labor and services, did not involve the offer or sale of securities under the Howey test, according to the SEC's filing.
Timeline and Next Steps in the Ripple vs. SEC Legal Battle
In its filing, the SEC noted that Ripple will have to respond by Aug. 16, 2023 (a week from the letter's filing), and proposed filing an opening brief laying out the appeal on Aug. 18. Ripple would have two weeks to respond, and the SEC would have another week to reply to Ripple if the judge signs off on the filing.
