Ripple Labs has reached a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), concluding a legal battle that began in December 2020 over the alleged sale of unregistered securities.
Under the agreement, Ripple will pay a reduced fine of $50 million, down from the previously imposed $125 million. The settlement, pending approval from the SEC and the presiding judge, resolves one of the SEC's prominent cryptocurrency cases, reflecting the regulator's eased approach toward the crypto industry. Ripple did not admit any wrongdoing.
As part of the settlement, both parties have agreed to drop their respective appeals. The SEC will retain $50 million of the fine, which is currently in escrow. Additionally, the SEC has dropped its appeal regarding a judge's decision that XRP tokens sold on public exchanges do not qualify as securities. Ripple will also cease its appeal concerning the decision that $728 million in XRP sales to institutional investors should adhere to securities laws.
The announcement of the settlement has had a positive impact on XRP's market performance. Following the news, XRP surged over 6.9% in the past 24 hours to trade at $2.33, according to CoinMarketCap. Technical analysts suggest that the momentum could continue, with $2.25 identified as a key breakout level that XRP has been testing since January.
