XRP slides 9% after SEC appeals decision in landmark Ripple case

The price of the XRP token tumbled Thursday, a day after the Securities and Exchange Commission filed to appeal a 2023 court ruling that determined XRP is not considered a security when sold to retail investors on exchanges.

XRP was last lower by more than 9% at 52 cents a coin, according to Coin Metrics.

Ripple, the largest holder of XRP coins, scored a partial victory last summer after a three-year battle with the SEC. U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres handed down the decision, which was hailed as a landmark win for the crypto industry. Still, while XRP isn’t considered a security when sold to retail investors on exchanges, it is considered an unregistered security offering if sold to institutional investors.

Ripple declined to comment but referred to Wednesday evening posts on X by CEO Brad Garlinghouse and chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty.

Alderoty said the company is evaluating whether to file a cross appeal, and called the SEC’s decision to appeal “disappointing, but not surprising.” The SEC, under Chair Gary Gensler, has become notorious for its refusal to provide clear guidance for crypto businesses, instead opting to regulate by enforcement actions.

“XRP’s status as a non-security is the law of the land today – and that does not change even in the face of this misguided – and infuriating – appeal,” Garlinghouse said on X.

Earlier on Wednesday, Bitwise Asset Management, an issuer of ETFs tracking bitcoin (BITB) and ether (ETHW), submitted a registration filing for what would be the first XRP ETF – two days after registering an XRP trust product in Delaware. Grayscale, which also has bitcoin (GBTC) and ether (ETHE) ETFs, introduced a similar trust product in September.

XRP, which was created by the founders of Ripple, is the native token of the open source XRP Ledger, which Ripple uses in its cross-border payments business. It is the fifth-largest coin by market cap, excluding stablecoins Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC).

Elsewhere in the crypto market, bitcoin hovered above the flat line at $60,210.29, while ether fell more than 2% to $2,320.20. Crypto stocks Coinbase and MicroStrategy were lower by about 1% and 2%, respectively.