TLDR
- SEC has withdrawn its appeal in the long-running legal case against Ripple
- The legal battle lasted four years after beginning in December 2020 with allegations of a $1.3 billion unregistered securities offering
- Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced the conclusion on March 19, 2025
- The lawsuit had previously caused approximately $15 billion in losses for XRP holders
- XRP price has responded positively, trading at $2.55 after the announcement
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has decided to end its pursuit of Ripple. The regulatory agency is dropping its appeal in the long-running legal battle over XRP, according to an announcement from Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse on March 19.
“I’m finally able to announce that this case has ended. It’s over,” Garlinghouse stated in a video shared on social media platform X. The announcement marks the conclusion of a legal struggle that began in December 2020.
This is it – the moment we’ve been waiting for. The SEC will drop its appeal – a resounding victory for Ripple, for crypto, every way you look at it.
The future is bright. Let’s build. pic.twitter.com/7WsD0C92Cm
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) March 19, 2025
The case started when the SEC filed charges against Ripple. The regulator claimed the company had conducted an unregistered securities offering worth $1.3 billion through sales of its XRP token.
This legal decision represents a major win for Ripple. The company had already secured a partial victory when a U.S. judge ruled that XRP was not a security in secondary market sales, though institutional sales were found to violate securities laws.
The SEC had initially indicated it would appeal those rulings. The decision to drop the case entirely marks a complete reversal of the agency’s position, though the SEC has not yet released an official statement confirming this development.
XRP holders suffered heavy losses when the case began. Garlinghouse pointed out that approximately $15 billion in market value was erased when the SEC first filed its lawsuit against Ripple in 2020.
“The SEC was the market manipulator,” Garlinghouse claimed in his statement. He argued that the regulator’s actions harmed investors rather than protecting them, which he described as contrary to the agency’s mission.
The resolution comes during a shift in the SEC’s approach to cryptocurrency regulation. Under Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda, the agency has withdrawn from more than ten other crypto enforcement cases, including those against major players like Coinbase, Uniswap Labs, and Kraken.
Garlinghouse described the lawsuit as “the first major shot fired in the war on crypto.” He suggested that the case was “doomed from the start” and part of a broader government effort to “pick winners” in the cryptocurrency space.
Former SEC Chair Mary Jo White publicly criticized the agency’s decision to pursue the case. According to Garlinghouse, White stated that the SEC was “dead wrong” in its approach to Ripple and XRP.
During the legal proceedings, the SEC faced judicial criticism. Garlinghouse noted that the agency was sanctioned for discovery abuses, with the judge rebuking them for lacking “faithful allegiance to the law” in their handling of the case.
The outcome of this case has established that “the digital asset XRP is not a security. That is now the law,” according to Garlinghouse. This precedent could influence how regulators approach digital assets in the future.
XRP Price Reacts
The crypto market responded positively to the news. XRP’s price jumped following the announcement and was trading at $2.55, showing renewed investor confidence after years of regulatory uncertainty.
XRP Price
The resolution aligns with what appears to be a changing regulatory environment under the Trump administration. New leadership in both executive and legislative branches is working to establish clearer frameworks for cryptocurrency assets in the United States.
“This is a fight Ripple never wanted, but one we knew we had to win. And today, emphatically, we have,”
Garlinghouse stated. He expressed gratitude to Ripple employees, the legal team led by Chief Legal Officer Stu Alderody, and the broader XRP community.
Garlinghouse concluded his announcement with a forward-looking statement: “It’s time to make the United States the crypto capital of the world.” This suggests the company sees the legal victory as an opportunity for wider crypto adoption and innovation in the American market.
