The joint request proposes a payment of $50 million to the SEC and represents an important step toward ending the long legal battle over XRP sales.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple Labs jointly requested a Manhattan federal court to dissolve a previous injunction and release $125 million currently held in custody, according to documents filed on Thursday in the Southern District Court of New York.
Under the proposed agreement, Ripple would pay a civil fine of $50 million to the SEC, while the remaining amounts would be returned to the company. The petition represents a significant step toward ending a lawsuit that has dragged on for nearly four years and has garnered widespread attention in the cryptocurrency sector.
Ripple forwarded the court documentation to Decrypt when it was contacted for comment on the case.
The joint motion follows previous attempts by both parties to suspend ongoing appeals and reach a negotiated resolution. The request still needs to be approved by District Judge Analisa Torres.
Filed in 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) action accused Ripple of raising $1.3 billion through the sale of XRP as unregistered securities.
Ripple denied any wrongdoing and, in 2023, achieved a partial victory when Judge Torres ruled that programmatic sales of XRP on public exchanges to retail investors did not constitute offers of securities. However, the court identified violations in the company's institutional sales.
After this decision, the SEC initially sought a fine of $2 billion, which was later reduced to $125 million. Under the proposed agreement, Ripple and its top executives will pay $50 million, and the remaining funds will return to the company. The SEC, now under new leadership, agreed to the terms.
Pro-crypto landscape in the U.S.
The measure comes amid a shift in posture from the SEC, now under the presidency of Donald Trump, which has moved away from the more aggressive regulatory approach toward the crypto sector adopted during former President Joe Biden's administration.
Several high-profile lawsuits and investigations initiated by former SEC Chairman Gary Gensler have already been dismissed.
In May, SEC Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw criticized this shift, warning that the agency's withdrawal from the crypto sector puts investors at risk.
Judge Torres had previously rejected a request for a indicative ruling on the agreement, citing procedural issues due to pending appeals in the Second Circuit. Since then, both parties have filed motions to suspend those appeals.
