Four years, one lawsuit, and a mixed ruling later, Ripple’s CEO is taking a victory lap. Brad Garlinghouse called a federal judge’s determination that $XRP is not a security one of the most consequential moments in crypto regulation, arguing it opens the door for institutional adoption and clearer rules across the industry.
What the judge actually ruled
The SEC sued Ripple in December 2020, alleging the company sold $XRP as an unregistered security, raising $1.3 billion through those sales.
In July 2023, Judge Analisa Torres delivered a split decision. She found that Ripple’s institutional sales of $XRP did qualify as securities transactions. But programmatic sales of $XRP on public exchanges were not securities.
The SEC initially signaled it would appeal the ruling. Then, in March 2025, the agency dropped the appeal entirely. $XRP surged 10% to $2.55 on that news.
Garlinghouse’s take
During an interview on Fox Business, Garlinghouse called the ruling “brilliant” and declared the saga complete.
“I’m finally able to announce that this case is over. It’s over.”
Garlinghouse highlighted $XRP’s growing institutional use case, suggesting that banks and financial institutions are more willing to adopt assets that come with legal clarity.
The SEC did not immediately comment following the announcement. The court docket also remained unupdated after Garlinghouse’s public statements.
Why this matters beyond $XRP
One risk to monitor: the same ruling that freed programmatic $XRP sales also confirmed that institutional sales were securities violations. Ripple paid a $125M penalty as part of the resolution.
The asset was trading at $1.3849 as of late February 2026 according to MEXC data, well off the $2.55 high it hit when the SEC dropped its appeal.
