XRP price is back in action, recently after hitting $2 it surpassed USDT to become the third-largest cryptocurrency by market cap flipping Tether and Solana. This marks a major milestone, bringing XRP back to where it was before Ripple’s legal battle with the SEC.
Fox Business journalist Eleanor Terrett recently highlighted XRP’s challenges, noting it was once the second-largest cryptocurrency before the SEC’s 2018 Hinman speech. The speech classified Bitcoin and Ethereum as non-securities, causing XRP to lose its position to Ethereum by November 2018 due to regulatory uncertainty. Documents from the Ripple case, known as the “Hinman emails,” revealed internal SEC disagreements about the speech’s impact on other cryptocurrencies.
Six years later, XRP’s regulatory status remains unclear, fueling ongoing debates on how cryptocurrencies should be classified.
John Deaton’s Legal Battle for XRP’s Fairness
Attorney John Deaton has been a key figure in XRP’s legal journey. Reflecting on his battle against the SEC, Deaton revealed that his initial XRP holdings were modest compared to his investments in Bitcoin and Ethereum. However, the SEC’s claim that all XRP transactions were illegal motivated him to step up and defend not just Ripple but also XRP’s global users.
Deaton highlighted key inconsistencies in the SEC’s actions. In 2014, the U.S. Government Accountability Office classified XRP as a virtual currency. In 2015, FinCEN declared XRP a currency and set compliance rules for Ripple. By 2019, Coinbase listed XRP after thorough legal reviews, and MoneyGram publicly disclosed using XRP in its business. Despite these validations, the SEC filed its lawsuit in December 2020, calling XRP an unregistered security and sending shockwaves through the crypto world.
But it’s not just Deaton who supported XRP, the 75000 XRP army also made it possible and stayed strong in all phases of XRP. Many investors have doubled their holdings just to show their confidence in XRP.
XRP Price Surge
XRP closed November with a whopping 3x rally, hitting a seven-year high. The crypto remained resilient despite releasing 1 billion tokens, which might concern newcomers unfamiliar with XRP’s tokenomics. After yesterday’s 2.4% dip, XRP has seen a 29% surge today and is currently trading at $2.44.
As the new month begins, market watchers are eager to see how XRP performs amid increased trading volumes, suggesting the continuation of its recent momentum. Analysts are hopeful that XRP will see a massive jump in January after Gary Gensler steps down.
