As the SEC’s case against Ripple continues to make headlines, many are left wondering: why the silence? Despite the SEC’s recent activity, which saw cases dropped against major players like Coinbase, Gemini and Robinhood, the Ripple case remains unresolved—and it’s far from simple.
The Ripple-XRP case has reached a crucial point where a judge has already issued a split decision. On one hand, the SEC won a portion of the case, while Ripple claimed victory on another. The biggest takeaway? XRP was not classified as a security—a significant win for Ripple and its community. However, there are still unresolved issues, such as the finding of securities law violations and the potential penalties Ripple could face.
Legal expert James Murphy aka Metalawman has a theory on the unexpected delay. He suggests that Ripple could be in active negotiations with the SEC to have some of Judge Torres’s decision vacated. Ripple could be looking for a better deal, particularly if they’re eyeing future securities offerings or an IPO. If both sides were to dismiss their appeals, Ripple could potentially settle with a $125 million penalty—but could they push for more?
I have a Theory about the SEC’s unexplained delay in dismissing the @Ripple case.
It might not be the SEC.
It could be that @Ripple is negotiating hard to get the SEC to agree to vacate some or all of Judge Torres’ decision.
The Torres decision was unquestionably GREAT for…
— MetaLawMan (@MetaLawMan) March 1, 2025
However, Murphy also wrote, “It is far from a sure thing that a federal judge would agree to vacate a prior ruling as part of a settlement. This was fairly commonplace several years ago when I started in the law business, but judges started balking at this in more recent times.”
Although this remains speculation, Murphy’s theory has gained support from figures like attorney John Deaton. And while the settlement process could drag on, Ripple may be strategically waiting for market conditions to improve. As XRP continues its downward trend, the timing for any positive announcement may need to align with a broader market recovery—especially when it comes to boosting the price of XRP.
