SEC and Ripple Labs have concluded their legal dispute that began in 2020. The parties submitted a joint notice to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, withdrawing further appeals.
Following the Commission’s vote today, the SEC and Ripple formally filed directly with the Second Circuit to dismiss their appeals.
The end…and now back to business. https://t.co/nVqthNcFOt
— Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) August 7, 2025
“The end of the story… Now back to business,” wrote Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty.
In response to the news, the price of XRP surged nearly 11%, according to CoinGecko. At the time of writing, the cryptocurrency is trading at $3.32.
The SEC filed a lawsuit against Ripple in December 2020, accusing the company of illegally selling XRP.
In July 2023, Judge Analisa Torres ruled that trading XRP on exchanges does not violate the law. However, offering the cryptocurrency to institutional investors breached securities laws.
Ripple was fined $125 million, while the regulator had demanded $2 billion. In October 2024, the SEC filed an appeal, and the company filed a counter-appeal.
Following Donald Trump’s re-election as U.S. President and a change in the Commission’s leadership, the parties agreed to end the dispute. In June this year, Ripple and the SEC requested the court to lift the fine and the ban on offering XRP to major players, but Torres rejected the request.
On August 7, the company and the regulator submitted a joint statement withdrawing their appeals. Each party will cover its own court costs.
Torres’s 2023 decision is final and cannot be appealed. XRP traded on exchanges is not a security. Direct sales to institutions will require SEC registration.
XRP’s Growth Potential
Bitget’s Chief Analyst Ryan Lee told ForkLog that Ripple’s partnerships with over 300 financial institutions, including Santander and BNY Mellon, influence the token’s prospects.
“The On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) service, which settles transactions in seconds with minimal fees, enhances XRP’s appeal for money transfers. In 2024, ODL processed transactions worth $15.2 billion. The stablecoin RLUSD and asset tokenization on the XRP Ledger provide additional momentum,” he noted.
TECHNOBIT CEO Alexander Peresich suggested that XRP’s price could rise to $4.7, but linked it to the overall market dynamics.
“Isolated from market dynamics and against the general trend, it will be extremely difficult for the coin to move upward. Much will depend on the macroeconomic situation and the prospects for expanding cross-border payment projects, especially in the Asian region,” he explained.
Both experts pointed to competition from stablecoins as a restraining factor, particularly USDC, which attracts institutions due to its registration in the U.S. jurisdiction.
According to their joint forecast, sustained interest in blockchain-based cross-border transfers amid a positive market will allow XRP to reach new price highs.
Ripple acquired the stablecoin platform Rail for $200 million. The acquisition aims to create a comprehensive solution for payments in “stablecoins” and strengthen the company’s position in this segment.