Expert in bitcoin law John Deaton has provided analysis of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) v. Ripple case.He argues that a $20 million or less settlement would represent a major win for the firm in court.In a recent post on X (formerly Twitter), Deaton vehemently disputed the notion that the SEC won the litigation 50/50, asserting that Ripple actually had a 90/10 edge.A post by Stuart Alderoty, chief legal officer of Ripple, outlining yet another legal loss for the SEC, served as the impetus for Deaton’s statements.
Deaton’s point of view is in line with the prevailing consensus in the cryptocurrency world, which sees the proposed $20 million settlement as a good way to help Ripple out.This analysis takes into account the wider regulatory framework pertaining to digital currencies as well as the possible ramifications of the XRP litigation.
The narrative is further developed by Stuart Alderoty’s essay, which notes that the SEC lost this week, carrying on a run of losses.Alderoty claims that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit decided in the SEC v. Govil case that the SEC cannot ask for a significant disgorgement award unless it first proves that actual financial injury to “investors” has occurred.In essence, it means that there is no punishment if there is no harm.The SEC filed a lawsuit against Ripple Labs in December 2020, alleging that the company had sold its own cryptocurrency, XRP, in an unregistered securities offering.
A precedent was ultimately made when Judge Analisa Torres ruled that the asset, when exchanged on the secondary market, was not a security.Also, when the allegations against the Ripple executives were dropped, the case experienced substantial modifications.
Concurrently, Torres recently gave his approval to an order that addressed the joint proposal for a briefing schedule by Ripple and the SEC to address institutional sales of XRP.This is connected to the section of the XRP case whereby it was found that the business had violated securities laws.On November 9th, Torres gave the parties till that day to submit a unified briefing agenda.