ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood says that she is bullish on top US crypto exchange Coinbase after the ruling in Ripple’s legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In a new Bloomberg interview, Wood says that while ARK decided to sell some Coinbase shares for profit-taking, she continues to have an optimistic […]
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Representative Ritchie Torres shares a surname with Judge Analisa Torres in the SEC v. Ripple case and referred to the XRP court ruling as the 'Torres Doctrine'.
New York Representative Ritchie Torres has called on United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chair Gary Gensler to reconsider the regulator’s position on crypto following a "dreadful day in court".
In a July 18 letter to Gensler, Rep. Torres requested the SEC limit its enforcement cases to “bonafide bad actors" rather than “indiscriminately” treating the majority of crypto assets as securities under its purview. The lawmaker’s letter followed a court ruling in the SEC’s case against blockchain firm Ripple which suggested that the XRP token was largely not a security.
“Under Chair Gensler, the SEC has not issued a single rule on crypto assets, nor has it given any clear guidance," said Rep. Torres. "All it has done is sent mixed messages, one after the another [sic], not only contradicting the CFTC but often contradicting itself.”
Crypto regulation by enforcement had a dreadful day in court.
— Rep. Ritchie Torres (@RepRitchie) July 18, 2023
In light of the SDNY’s landmark decision in the Ripple case, @SECGov must reassess its reckless regulatory assault on the crypto industry.
My letter to Chair Gensler: pic.twitter.com/Mrk63N4KhH
Rep. Torres echoed other experts in suggesting a quick appeal to the court decision was unlikely, and with a new legal foundation, the SEC’s case against Coinbase could also be at risk. The commission filed a lawsuit against the exchange in June for allegedly offering unregistered securities.
“[The SEC] must reassess its reckless regulatory assault on the crypto industry.”
Related: Ripple court ruling makes call for regulation ‘more compelling and more urgent’ — former CFTC chair
The U.S. lawmaker coincidentally shares a surname with the judge in the SEC v. Ripple case, Judge Analisa Torres. He referred to the XRP court ruling as the ‘Torres Doctrine’ — likely referring to the judge and not himself, as he “never met a Torres who was wrong on crypto”. Rep. Torres is a member of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus.
It’s unclear how the SEC intends to respond to the court ruling. Chair Gensler said on July 17 that he was “disappointed” on the impact the judge’s decision could have on retail investors, and the commission was still considering what if any actions it might take.
Magazine: Crypto regulation: Does SEC Chair Gary Gensler have the final say?
A former high-ranking official of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) thinks the recent ruling in the regulator’s high-profile lawsuit against Ripple is primed for reversal on appeal. John Reed Stark, who founded the SEC’s Office of Internet Enforcement and spent 11 years as its chief, says in a new LinkedIn post that US […]
The post Former SEC Official Predicts Reversal of Landmark XRP Ruling, Says Court Decision Standing on Shaky Ground appeared first on The Daily Hodl.
Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz said he was “praying for four things” in mid-May that he believed would boost crypto prices. The crypto billionaire now says he didn’t expect to see so much progress on his wish list in such a short amount of time. “Eight weeks ago, I was praying for four things that […]
The post Billionaire Mike Novogratz Has Four Wishes To Trigger Next Crypto Market Rally – Here’s His Outlook appeared first on The Daily Hodl.
CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham says recent court opinions around digital assets and securities are a first step to crypto regulatory clarity.
Caroline Pham, one of five commissioner of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, believes the path to United States crypto regulatory clarity has been laid out following Ripple’s partial victory.
Speaking on Bloomberg TV on July 17, Commissioner Pham said recent big court decisions regarding the classification of crypto assets will eventually lead to regulatory clarity.
“You know, last year I said that we were going to see regulatory clarity first in the courts around the definition of a security, and I think we’ve seen that with some very big court opinions that have been released.”
Pham said that she was looking forward to participating in regulatory working groups and hoped other United States regulators, such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, would work together to come up with a “holistic approach” to crypto regulation.
Pham's comments come a few days after San Francisco fintech firm Ripple won a key partial victory in an ongoing court battle in which the SEC accused it of selling unregistered securities.
Judge Analisa Torres of the Southern District of New York ruled on July 14 that XRP (XRP) was not a security when sold to retail investors on digital asset exchanges.
Thank you @BloombergTV for the opportunity to talk about our important GMAC initiatives! Beyond crypto, institutional markets & central banks are looking at tokenization of real assets like bonds. Today, we heard about international, US & EU developments & key takeaways. https://t.co/cWTShDy2Bf
— Caroline D. Pham (@CarolineDPham) July 18, 2023
The ruling was not well received by SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who called it disappointing at a July 17 press conference. Gensler has previously suggested that every digital asset aside from Bitcoin is a security, though his agency has not gone as far as to say the same.
Despite this, Gensler has vowed to continue with enforcement actions following the recent Ripple triumph.
Related: Ripple court ruling makes call for regulation 'more compelling and more urgent' — former CFTC chair
Commissioner Pham also highlighted the importance of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization. She said there were “real opportunities” to modernize financial markets through the tokenization of money market funds on the blockchain.
Traditional finance companies have been increasing their engagement with real-world asset protocols, resulting in several RWAs outperforming DeFi assets recently.
Collect this article as an NFT to preserve this moment in history and show your support for independent journalism in the crypto space.
Magazine: Crypto regulation: Does SEC Chair Gary Gensler have the final say?
Gensler was asked about the Ripple decision twice shortly after the ruling, and his main message was that he would rather not talk about it.
United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chair Gary Gensler has commented publicly about the last week’s ruling on the agency’s suit against Ripple.
Gensler gave a talk on artificial intelligence at the National Press Club on July 17 and was asked about the ruling during the questions and answers afterward. Does the ruling affect his stance on cryptocurrency, and does it “inject urgency into the need for federal legislation to clarify regulatory oversight of this industry,” he was asked. He replied:
“We are pleased from that decision recognizing the importance of protecting investors – institutional investors – and the court movement in regard to fair notice, and while disappointed [by] what they said about retail investors, we are still looking at it and assessing that opinion.”
Unsurprisingly, the topic arose later in the day when Gensler spoke to Yahoo Finance. Gensler largely repeated himself, saying, “We are pleased that the court addressed […] that a token for institutional investors is a security […] disappointed in the other aspect about retail investors. We are still taking a look at that and considering it.”
Related: Ripple court ruling makes call for regulation 'more compelling and more urgent' — former CFTC chair
A lot of crypto exchanges “feel like this was a real win for them” and are relisting XRP, interviewer Jennifer Schonberger told him. Could the decision set a precedent? “You’re asking good questions,” Gensler replied, before declining to answer, citing ongoing litigation.
JUST IN:
— whalechart (@WhaleChart) July 17, 2023
SEC Chair Gary Gensler speaks about Ripple XRP ruling for first time, since last weeks court ruling pic.twitter.com/0lOzJEDs1e
But he did say that “these crypto platforms are commingling a number of services that […] we would not allow in any other parts of our capital markets.”
Does it make him reconsider writing customized rules for crypto, he was asked. “It’s too early. This was, like, three business days ago.” He added, “But I would note the agency has rules on the books right now […] about what it means to be a securities exchange.”
Gensler was asked about proposed Republican legislation that would create a decentralization test for crypto assets. He replied:
“I’m gonna save our comment on any draft legislation for members [of Congress] who ask us directly.”
Gensler said Satoshi Nakamoto (“whoever she was”) wrote a paper about moving value around on the internet without intermediaries, but the industry shows centralization in many places. “This is not a field that is immune to the economics of finance,” he concluded.
Magazine: Crypto regulation: Does SEC Chair Gary Gensler have the final say?
Ripple Labs scored a partial victory in its lengthy legal battle with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, which dates back to 2020.
Given the current push for crypto regulation, the industry breathed a sigh of relief on July 13 as Ripple Labs scored a partial victory in its legal battle with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) dating back to 2020.
Judge Analisa Torres of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that Ripple’s XRP (XRP) token is not a security, but only regarding programmatic sales on digital asset exchanges. However, the SEC also notched up a victory of its own, with the judge ruling that XRP is a security when sold to institutional investors, as it met the conditions set in the Howey test.
Immediately after the news, Ripple became the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. Mere hours after the ruling, XRP’s market cap surged a whopping $21.2 billion to reach a new yearly high of $46.1 billion, pushing it up from seventh position to beat out Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) and Binance’s BNB (BNB) token in the process.
Industry heavyweights believe the decision will aid crypto exchanges Coinbase and Binance in their respective SEC lawsuits. Tyler Winklevoss, the CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, said the ruling “decimates” the SEC’s case against Coinbase. His twin brother, Cameron Winklevoss, referred to the ruling as a “watershed moment” that will make it difficult for the SEC to claim authority over cryptocurrencies. United States Senator Cynthia Lummis stated that the verdict reinforces the immediate requirement for Congress to provide a thorough crypto framework that prioritizes the safeguarding of consumers.
South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) announced a new bill requiring all firms that issue or hold cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) to disclose their holdings. The new measures aim to enhance transparency in the accounting and disclosure of crypto assets in line with supervision guidelines that require accounting for each transaction involving crypto. The initiative also targets revising accounting standards that obligate disclosure of virtual asset transactions.
Argentina welcomed its first Bitcoin futures contract on July 13, three months after the country’s securities watchdog approved the underlying index as part of a strategic innovation agenda. The Bitcoin futures contract will be based on the price of BTC quoted by several market participants providing BTC/ARS trading pairs. All trades will be settled with Argentine pesos, and traders are required to make deposits through bank transfers. According to local media reports, the product will initially be available only to institutional investors. There’s no clear timeline for when retail investors can trade Bitcoin futures contracts in the country.
The former CEO of now-bankrupt crypto lender Celsius, Alex Mashinsky, was arrested after a probe into the company’s collapse. On the same day, the SEC filed a lawsuit against Mashinsky, charging him for raising “billions of dollars” through unregistered and fraudulent offers, as well as selling “crypto asset securities.” The criminal charges came parallel to those from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which announced a complaint against Celsius and Mashinsky on July 13. According to the commission, Celsius allegedly acted as an unregistered commodity pool operator, while Mashinsky was an unregistered associated person of the said operator, which are violations of the Commodity Exchange Act.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is unlikely to attempt to appeal the results of its lawsuit against payments firm Ripple, according to closely followed attorney Jeremy Hogan. The SEC sued Ripple in late 2020 for allegedly selling XRP as an unregistered security, and last week, Judge Analisa Torres ruled Ripple’s automated, open market […]
The post Lawyer Jeremy Hogan Says SEC Unlikely To Appeal Ripple Lawsuit Ruling – Here’s Why appeared first on The Daily Hodl.
XRP gained 1% over Bitcoin in volume between June 17 and July 17, with U.S. exchanges listing it again and international support never failing, Kaiko found.
The July 13 ruling on the suit filed by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has led to unprecedented interest in the XRP token. In the few days since the court decision, a jump in XRP (XRP) trading has seen it surpass all other cryptos in monthly volume, according to Kaiko.
In a research report released on July 17, the blockchain information service noted a 61% increase in XRP trading since the court’s decision. On Monday morning, XRP accounted for 21% of global trade volume, ahead of Bitcoin (BTC), with 20%. Ether (ETH) accounted for 8% of trading in that time.
Related: XRP ruling a ‘watershed moment,’ but we’re not out of the woods yet — Lawyers
The price of XRP has hit a 15-month high, and trading volume is at a 10-month high. “[G]lobal trading activity remains subdued,” the report stated as an explanation for the relatively modest jump in trading volume. In addition, “Altcoin volumes (excluding XRP) did not see as large a bump as expected.”
#XRP has surpassed #BTC as the highest volume asset
— Kaiko (@KaikoData) July 17, 2023
Since last week's court ruling, 21% of all crypto trade volume has been for XRP. pic.twitter.com/OLdTQrk1kO
XRP’s market cap rose by $21.2 billion within hours of the ruling to become the fourth largest crypto, up from seventh place. XRP trading was helped along by the return of the token to U.S. crypto exchanges. Kaiko noted in its report, however, that XRP had weathered the SEC suit, filed in 2020, with remarkably little downturn thanks to international support:
“What’s interesting about XRP is that the lawsuit and exchange de-listings did not have an overly negative impact on price or volume at the time.”
Interest remained high, particularly in South Korea, with exchanges Upbit and Bithumb seeing $467 billion in trading after the suit was filed. Binance processed over $600 billion in trades in that time.
The SEC may appeal the ruling, Kaiko said. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse expressed confidence that an appeal decision would favor Ripple.
Judge Analisa Torres has sent the remaining issues in the SEC v. Ripple case to Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn.
The next phase of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) v. Ripple case is set to move forward, as Judge Analisa Torres of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York filed paperwork on July 17 referring the case to Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn.
First reported by journalist Eleanor Terrett, the court issued an “amended order of reference to a Magistrate,” transferring judiciary oversight of the case to the magistrate’s office.
NEW: District Judge Torres has referred the @Ripple case to Magistrate Judge Netburn for General Pretrial (includes scheduling, discovery, non-dispositive pre-trial motions and settlement). pic.twitter.com/EyrA3flpXC
— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) July 17, 2023
The single-page document, which was viewed by Cointelegraph, indicates that the next step will be general pretrial. This stage usually entails discovery and a short window to raise objections.
General pretrial is the most likely portion of the proceedings for a settlement to occur. As Cointelegraph recently reported, experts believe that it’s unlikely the SEC will appeal the previous week's rulings by Torres.
Related: Judge rules XRP is not a security in SEC's case against Ripple
In a partial victory for Ripple on July 13, Torres ruled to dismiss the allegation that Ripple broke the law by posting its XRP (XRP) token on public exchanges. This has been taken to mean that XRP is not a security, with implications for the crypto market as a whole.
Remaining, however, are accusations that XRP was sold as a security when Ripple sold it directly to investors via a marketing scheme that highlighted several aspects of XRP that, per the SEC, could lead investors to view it as a security.
Netburn will oversee this ensuing phase, where, as some experts predict, the SEC might be tempted to allow Ripple to settle the case.
Netburn has been involved in the case throughout its existence, including weighing in on several previous motions. Netburn issued the order to release the much-anticipated “Hinman documents,” a collection of SEC files that included text from a speech given by then-Director William Hinman in 2018, which were widely thought to be something akin to a smoking gun.
While the release of the documents may not have had the desired impact in the case the cryptocurrency community had outwardly hoped for, the resulting partial victory for Ripple has significantly impacted overall cryptocurrency sentiment.
Alongside Netburn’s history of challenging the SEC’s assertions in the case, there’s plenty of reason to believe the positive sentiment will carry through. At the time of publication, XRP is trading at $0.72, down from last week's peak but still up over 56% since July 13.
