XRP Price Surpasses $1 for the First Time in Three Years

On Saturday, November 16, the price of XRP surpassed the psychological threshold of $1 for the first time since December 2021.

At the time of writing, XRP is trading at $1.02, having gained 83.8% over the past week.

According to CoinGecko, the cryptocurrency’s market capitalization has reached $58 billion.

The asset is highly sensitive to news regarding the potential departure of Gary Gensler from his position as head of the SEC due to the long-standing legal battle between Ripple and the regulator. This was prompted by an official statement that many interpreted as preparation for such a scenario.

In December 2020, the SEC accused Ripple of selling unregistered securities in the form of XRP, amounting to $1.3 billion. Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse and co-founder Chris Larsen were also named as defendants.

In July 2023, a court ruled that programmatic sales and other distributions of Ripple’s coin did not constitute an offer and sale of investment contracts. However, the decision stated that sales of tokens to large players violated U.S. securities laws.

The court dismissed the SEC’s interim appeal, finding it lacked sufficient evidence and would not “significantly advance the ultimate termination of the litigation.”

Subsequently, the Commission withdrew its lawsuit against Garlinghouse and Larsen. The parties reached a settlement, eliminating further charges on previous grounds.

In August 2024, the court issued a final ruling on the case, fining Ripple $125 million. The regulator had initially demanded $2 billion. In October, the SEC contested the verdict.

Earlier, Garlinghouse expressed confidence in a “reset” of the crypto industry following the U.S. presidential elections.

Previously, 21Shares and Canary Capital filed applications with the SEC to register spot XRP-ETFs.