The long-running legal battle between Ripple and the SEC takes a new twist. Federal Judge Sarah Netburn has given the Securities and Exchange Commission permission to demand certain financial documents from Ripple, tightening the noose around the company. Ripple must comply with the court’s ruling by February 12.
Table of Contents
SEC obtains permission to obtain Ripple’s financial statements
Ripple already weakened by the massive theft of XRP tokens from his co-founder Chris Larsen has just suffered another blow. As part of his legal battle against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a federal judge has just authorized the latter to demand certain financial documents from the company.
Indeed, in a order issued in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on Monday, February 5, the federal judge Sarah Netburn forced Ripple to communicate to the SEC its financial statements for the years 2022 and 2023.
The judge also ordered the company to provide the contracts governing “institutional sales “of XRP before the SEC in December 2020.
The aim of the SEC is to use these documents to counter Ripple’s arguments that its actions have been compliant since the complaint was filed. The SEC considering the XRP as an unregistered financial security, the judge Netburn proved him right, considering that this information could assist the court in preparing its appeal against Ripple. The company now has until February 12 to comply with the judge’s decision.
The judge’s decision puts further pressure on Ripple!
With this decision, the judge Netburn increases the pressure on Ripple to SEC lawsuit which will begin next April.
It should be remembered that although XRP has only been considered a security with institutional investors, this is nonetheless sufficient to justify the prosecution, according to the magistrate.
The position of the SEC, which has also cracked down on Coinbase and other exchange giants, is seen by Ripple as an “uncontrollable regulator”..
It remains to be seen whether the U.S. regulator will ultimately deal the company a heavy blow, or whether the company will be able to turn things around by the time it goes to trial.
As a journalist at Coinpri, I’ve been captivated by the world of bitcoin and blockchain since 2020. The decentralized aspect of Bitcoin particularly piqued my interest. Since then, I’ve been working constantly to spread my knowledge, hoping one day to see a world where everyone fully enjoys their financial freedom.
