The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s remedies-related brief has finally been revealed to the public, per James K. Filan’s prediction. It has been found that the SEC is pushing for a staggering $2 billion penalty against Ripple Labs as a demand for damages to be paid. Stuart Alderoty, Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer, has also commented in response.
The $2 Billion Penalty Proposal
The SEC has demanded $2 billion as fines and penalties in its case against Ripple Labs over sales of the cryptocurrency XRP. Although James K. Filan had said the documents would be available to the public on 26th March, the crypto community learned about this through Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer, Stuart Alderoty’s X post.
Alderoty expressed Ripple’s disbelief at the SEC’s move. Alderoty stated, “As you will see when the SEC’s brief is made public tomorrow, they ask the Judge for $2B in fines and penalties. Our response will be filed next month, but as we all have seen time and again, this is a regulator that trades in statements that are false, mischaracterized and designed to mislead.”
If imposed, the proposed $2 billion penalty would leave a significant mark on the crypto regulatory landscape.
The legal dispute between Ripple Labs and the SEC has been ongoing since December 2020, when the SEC alleged violations of federal securities laws against Ripple and its executives.
Nonetheless, the case is not near its end, as we have to wait another month for Ripple’s response to SEC’s remedies brief and then, maybe, the hearing for the remedies phase will start.
