Court Denies SEC Classified Information in Case Against Ripple

Court Denies SEC Classified Information in Case Against Ripple
A court denied the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) request to classify information in a case against Ripple
XRP native blockchain coin rises 8% after favorable news for investors

A court denied a request by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to classify portions of the documents in the case against cryptocurrency company Ripple. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said on Twitter that emails from one of the agency's former top executives Bill Hinman, which may contain information important to the case, will soon become publicly available.

The SEC sued Ripple in 2020, arguing that the company should have registered the cryptocurrency XRP (XRP) as a security, but failed to do so. The SEC's case against Ripple has become one of the most important litigation in the industry over the years, and its end result could have serious implications for digital asset rules in the United States.

Part of the litigation centered on documents related to a 2018 speech by former SEC Director of Corporate Finance Bill Hinman, which included remarks about why he did not consider cryptocurrencies to be securities.

The SEC sought to withhold documents and communications related to Hinman's speech, claiming that his words reflected personal views, not agency policy. The commission also said the documents were part of Hinman's duties and were protected by a law that ensures the confidentiality of internal deliberations.

But Judge Analise Torres on May 16 denied the SEC's motion. According to Garlinghouse, lawyers are already working to have the letters made public.

After investors learned of the court ruling favorable to the cryptocurrency, Ripple's native blockchain-ecosystem coin XRP (XRP) rose 8.2 percent, from $0.424 to $0.459.

Court Denies SEC Classified Information in Case Against Ripple

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