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- Tensions rise as Ripple CLO Stuart Alderoty slams SEC Chair Gary Gensler harshly.
- XRP pricing at $0.5302 is down 2.22% in a day but has been rising over the last week.
With Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty of Ripple harshly condemning SEC Chair Gary Gensler, the legal dispute between the company and the SEC has taken a dramatic turn. This emphasizes the growing tensions throughout the lawsuit and the significant stakes for Ripple and the larger cryptocurrency sector. It also illustrates how the U.S. presidential election has come to include cryptocurrency.
SEC Chair Gensler is the target of Ripple CLO
Recently, CLO of Ripple Stuart Alderoty harshly criticized SEC Chair Gary Gensler on X. He accused Gensler of abusing his power and turning into a political liability in his role.
Gensler overplayed his hand. He thought crypto was an easy target. He relished being the guy that everyone loved to hate. He thought he was above Congressional oversight. That’s all gone. He’s now a struggling political liability. https://t.co/Uy6Mwed6hJ
— Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) May 22, 2024
The comment, interestingly, captures the mounting annoyances among the cryptocurrency community. This remark reacted to another post that brought attention to the SEC’s very high political profile.
A presidential contender mentioning the SEC Chair by name or a sitting President threatening to veto legislation pertaining to the SEC are unprecedented, the user noted. The continuous legal fight gains even more complexity from this political aspect.
More General Consequences of the Ripple Case
Influence of the Ripple case goes beyond its immediate participants. As background, Uniswap has brought up the Ripple case in its legal dispute with the SEC, especially with regard to the nature of airdrops. As pro-XRP attorney Bill Morgan pointed out:
“Uniswap felt compelled to contend that airdrops are not investment contracts. It seems the SEC mentioned airdrops in the Wells announcement.”
“It makes no sense that some tokens given away are inherently not securities and other tokens sold are inherently securities,” Morgan said in highlighting the SEC’s contradictory stances. It has to be the conditions of the sale.
SEC Files Against Ripple Recently
In the meantime, the SEC’s recent filing opposing Ripple’s request to redact and seal specific material heightened the legal conflict. The SEC contended on May 21 that it was illegal for Ripple to have financial and securities sales data kept from the general public.
The regulator asserted in the most recent submission that the court’s decision-making process depends critically on the information Ripple wants to redact, including sales statistics, financial information, and discounts to institutional investors. The SEC further underlined that comprehension of the fines and remedies in the case depends on this information.
Meanwhile, at the time of writing, XRP was valued at roughly $0.5302, down 2.22% from the previous day, according to CoinMarketCap data. Still, with a 4.84% rise over the last seven days, it indicates a bullish position. Conversely, Ripple has registered a trademark for RLUSD, its new dollar-based stablecoin, according to a prior CNF report.
