Ripple Vs. SEC Court Update: Secret Meeting Next Week?

Another month has passed without a settlement in the legal dispute between Ripple Labs and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Despite the fact that some XRP attorneys expect a verdict in late April, Judge Torres of the District Court for the Southern District of New York has yet to issue a verdict.

However, a rumor spread on Twitter a few hours ago, implying that a decision in the legal battle between Ripple and the SEC is imminent. However, as this is an unconfirmed rumor from an anonymous source, it should be treated with caution.

According to the Blockchain Daily Twitter account, Ripple and SEC will attend an undisclosed meeting on May 8. Twitter users are already speculating that this could be about a settlement. XRP community attorney John E. Deaton, on the other hand, would be “betting” that the report was false. He claims that lawyers from the SEC and Ripple can meet whenever they want. “I don’t think they’re going to pick a date a week from now and then leak it,” Deaton said, adding that the settlement wouldn’t happen that way.

First, Deaton believed that a settlement would be reached only after Judge Torres’ decision, and only if Ripple won a landslide victory, allowing Gensler to save face and score a political victory via settlement.

Second, according to Deaton, the SEC did not schedule a meeting due to alleged market manipulation and potential leaks. He expected Ripple and the SEC to “just meet”, which led him to the following assumptions:

According to John Deaton, it may make sense for Ripple to enter into a settlement after a possible victory over the SEC in certain circumstances. It will be “not what it was two years ago”, but it will depend on the decision and whether or not the SEC appeals.

Ripple may also be concerned about its partners’ regulatory compliance. “Is Bank of America, Ripple’s partner, comfortable with the decision or waiting to see if the SEC appeals Judge Torres’ ruling?” “Remember that the SEC can file an appeal notice and then withdraw it,” the attorney wrote.

In addition, Deaton believes Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse will be content to sign a settlement check if the SEC classifies all future XRP sales as non-securities and does not appeal. Why? Because this will result in an immediate cash recovery to the United States. However, a settlement would only be required if Judge Torres had not already provided for it in his decision.

At the time of publication, XRP price had not (much) reacted to the rumours. The market doesn’t seem to hold any credence. XRP is trading at $0.4657.