Ripple Labs’ long-running legal fight with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is officially over after both sides agreed to drop their appeals in the case.
Ripple’s chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty said on social media the matter was “over” and the company could get “back to business.”
Following the Commission’s vote today, the SEC and Ripple formally filed directly with the Second Circuit to dismiss their appeals.
Ripple, in turn, dropped its own appeal on the finding that institutional sales of XRP violated securities laws. Both parties will shoulder their own legal expenses.
The case’s resolution finalizes $125 million in penalties first outlined by Judge Analisa Torres. Of that, $50 million will go to the US Treasury, while $75 million—held in escrow since June—will be returned to Ripple.
The ruling also leaves in place a permanent injunction stopping Ripple from making institutional XRP sales without following securities laws.
It can be recalled that the litigation started in December 2020 when the regulatory body charged Ripple with raising $1.3 billion from unregistered securities offerings.
The move to suspend appeals follows US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House and appointment of new bosses at the SEC.
According to reports, under the new chair, Paul Atkins, the agency has backed away from more than a dozen enforcement actions and investigations involving crypto firms in recent months.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse earlier said both parties had already agreed in June to put closure to their appeals, though negotiations to reduce the penalties failed.
Meanwhile, market observers say the outcome is a reflection of the SEC’s softened approach in other high-profile cases, including those involving Coinbase and Kraken.
For the crypto industry, this resolution is being viewed as a sign of changing tides in Washington’s stance when it comes to regulation.
Analysts say the sharp spike in activity signals renewed investor confidence now that the legal cloud over Ripple has been cleared.
Featured image from Meta, chart from TradingView
