The legal fight between Ripple and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) flares up, and investors’ demand for more clarification in the XRP lawsuit rises. Strikingly, the latest news, such as a big move of 28.24 million worth of XRP by an anonymous whale to the Bitstamp exchange, have spiked up the rumors. While investors are waiting for SEC’s response brief to be released later on May 6, the community is rife with speculations and theorizing.
Whale Transfers 28M XRP Coins
As the Ripple vs. The SEC legal saga is still ongoing, while an unknown XRP whale, having the wallet address as “r4wf7…h4Rz” for example, has stirred the market by moving a massive amount of XRP. Whale Alert indicates that the whale transfers 28.24 million XRP tokens, which are the equivalent of $14.94 million to the Bitstamp exchange.
Besides, it is worth mentioning that this recent activity is coming on the heels of an XRP transfer spree by the whale to centralized exchanges in the last couple of weeks which has led to speculations on the reasons behind these transactions. In a nutshell, a massive transaction involving a great number of XRP by the unknown Whale has prompted a number of speculations on the part of the crypto world. Although some experts may take Ripple’s move as strategic divestment, which may be a signal of their doubt about XRP’s future against the current legal uncertainties, others think that it may be in line with Ripple’s broader liquidity management strategy.
Investors on Edge as SEC Response Brief Looms
The investors await the SEC’s upcoming response with bated breath, as the anticipation of the market-moving facts pave the way. SEC has got a critical time-frame, which requires to submit the response brief by May 6 and a redacted version of the brief by May 8. The SEC’s expert testimony was later struck from the opening brief on remedies, setting the stage for a more heated exchange of arguments between the two parties.
At the same time, Ripple held that the SEC had to provide the name of the witness and the testimony during remedies-related discovery. The SEC, nevertheless, claimed that Fox only performed a summary role, which constitutes a non-disclosure requirement during discovery.
Ripple Response
Notably, Ripple’s response brief emphasized the SEC’s failure to address pertinent cases cited in its motion, underscoring the contentious nature of the legal dispute. However, discussions on the XRP lawsuit surged after legal experts predicted Ripple’s potential loss.
For context, pro-XRP lawyer Bill Morgan suggested Ripple might lose the motion, anticipating the judge’s acceptance of expert evidence from Fox. Additionally, Attorney Jeremy Hogan echoed the same sentiment, asserting Ripple’s probable loss and subsequent deposition. Hogan emphasized the rarity of his stance, indicating the likelihood of Ripple deposing Fox, even if considered an “expert” by the court.
Meanwhile, despite the recent dump, the XRP price surged 2.59% to $0.5436 during writing. Notably, the crypto has added nearly 9% over the last seven days, amid a recovery noted in the broader crypto market.
