Court Officially Ends Ripple Vs SEC Case By Dismissing Parties’ Appeals

The U.S. Second Circuit has officially dismissed the SEC’s appeal and Ripple’s cross-appeal, formally ending the multi-year lawsuit. 

According to a one-page document shared by prominent defense lawyer James K. Filan, the appellate court approved the SEC and Ripple’s joint stipulation to withdraw their respective appeals. 

In the document, the Second Circuit confirmed that the parties are seeking the withdrawal of their appeals. Therefore, the court, through Clerk Catherine O’Hagan Wolfe, stated that the stipulation to dismiss the appeal is “So Ordered.” 

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The two-word decision implies that the court has granted the parties’ request to withdraw their appeals, effectively bringing the nearly five-year legal battle to a close. 

Ripple and SEC Appeals 

For context, the SEC appealed parts of the Ripple case in October 2024, opposing Judge Analisa Torres’ ruling on programmatic sales and other distributions of XRP. 

Despite the Judge declaring these transactions to be non-investment contracts, the SEC still maintained that they violated federal securities laws and sought to overturn the rulings in the Second Circuit. 

In response, Ripple also challenged the part of the ruling it lost–institutional sales of XRP. This ruling prompted Judge Torres to impose a $125 million fine against Ripple. The Judge also slammed a permanent injunction against the company, prohibiting it from selling XRP to institutional clients without registering with the SEC. 

With the inception of a pro-crypto administration in January, the SEC and Ripple agreed to withdraw their appeals. Part of the agreement involves dismissing the permanent injunction and slashing the $125 million fine to $50 million. 

However, Judge Torres denied that request. Consequently, the legal parties filed a joint stipulation of dismissal, asking the Second Circuit to dismiss their appeals. The court has granted the request, and the case has now been officially closed. 

Way Forward

With the appeals ended, the lower court rulings, including the summary judgment decision and the final judgment, remain intact. Notably, the $125 million fine, which was held in escrow by Ripple lawyers, will be disbursed to the SEC. 

Ripple will no longer conduct institutional XRP sales in the same way that was found to violate federal securities laws. The San Francisco-based fintech company will register all future XRP sales with the SEC to avoid further legal violations.

A key development for XRP investors is that the token no longer faces any immediate threat from the SEC regarding the December 2020 case. Judge Torres has already held that XRP in itself is not a security. 

In the meantime, XRP is benefitting from a relief rally across the broader crypto market. Its price has soared 5.82% over the past 24 hours, pushing the token above the $3 mark. Currently, XRP is trading at $3.03, with its market cap standing at $180.29 billion.