Ripple boss Garlinghouse takes a stand on the SEC lawsuit against XRP
For the first time, Ripple boss Brad Garlinghouse makes a comprehensive statement on the lawsuit brought by the US stock exchange regulator against XRP.
Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of crypto payment service provider Crypto Trader, revealed in a new Twitter thread that his company was unable to reach an out-of-court settlement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission regarding the SEC lawsuit regarding its proprietary cryptocurrency XRP.
In the same breath, he also complains about the “legal chaos” in the US surrounding the regulation of crypto currencies
The Ripple boss takes a detailed position on the lawsuit for the first time in the Twitter thread , sharply rejecting the „unproven allegations of the SEC“. Rather, the crypto payment service provider would be „on the right side of the facts and history“.
Although no agreement has been reached so far, Ripple is still ready to talk. Accordingly, Garlinghouse writes:
“We have tried to reach an agreement, and will try again under the new administration, so that we can resolve this issue in a way that allows the XRP community to continue our innovation, investors are adequately protected and the proper operation of the markets is restored. “
The US Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit against Ripple , Garlinghouse and co-founder Chris Larsen in December 2020 , alleging that the distribution of the company’s own cryptocurrency XRP was an unlawful sale of securities. Since the lawsuit became known, more than 25 crypto exchanges, including Coinbase, Bittrex, OKCoin and Bitstamp, have either ceased XRP trading or completely removed the cryptocurrency from their listing.
Garlinghouse points out that XRP is a decentralized and independent cryptocurrency, which is why Ripple has no control over which trading platform it is listed on
In that regard, however, he notes that there is a huge difference between a temporary freeze on trading and a complete removal. In addition, 95% of XRP would be traded outside of the USA, which is why a restriction by the SEC would only have minor implications.
Although Garlinghouse admits that „Ripple has no control over where XRP is listed and who buys it,“ he does not answer the question of whether the crypto payment service provider ever paid for crypto exchanges to add its own cryptocurrency to trade.
The Ripple boss is also disappointed that Tetragon, one of the largest investors in the crypto payment service provider, which owns 1.5% of the company’s shares, has filed an additional lawsuit . According to Garlinghouse, however, the other shareholders still have confidence.
Meanwhile, Garlinghouse does not want to see the silence of Ripple since December as inaction, because behind the scenes the legal department under the direction of general counsel Stuart Alderoty is already working on an official statement, which is to be issued within the next few weeks.