Brad Garlinghouse criticizes the Securities and Exchange Commission for disregarding the judgement that XRP is not a security.
Ripple Labs and the broader crypto industry are considered to have achieved a partial victory in July 2023 when U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres determined that the XRP token is not a security. However, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues to maintain its stance that XRP is a security, despite this ruling.
Criticizing the SEC’s disregard for the court ruling, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse directed his ire at the regulator. He responded in response to Bitnomial’s litigation, which challenged the SEC’s position on XRP futures.
Brad Garlinghouse recently expressed his dissatisfaction with the SEC in a tweet, criticizing the agency for disregarding the court’s ruling that XRP is not a security. He emphasized that the SEC’s actions demonstrate an attitude of acting beyond the law.
Garlinghouse’s dislike is in response to the SEC’s continued posture in the Bitnomial case, in which the crypto derivatives exchange Bitnomial challenged the SEC’s classification of XRP futures as “security futures.”
Bitnomial contends that XRP futures should be regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), as XRP has not been classified as a security. Bitnomial accused the SEC of exceeding its authority and imposing superfluous regulatory burdens on the exchange in its court filing.
Bitnomial emphasized that the SEC’s stance is in direct opposition to the court’s determination that XRP is not a security, which is why it supports Ripple’s stance.
In the interim, Stuart Alderoty, Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer, also expressed his skepticism regarding the credibility of a regulatory agency that disregards court rulings.
Alderoty emphasised that the SEC’s aggressive measures are unconstitutional, which further undermines the agency’s credibility. He characterized the SEC’s conduct as an alarming illustration of a regulatory body that, despite being vanquished in court, is attempting to enforce compliance through intimidation.
The crypto community has expressed apprehension regarding the SEC’s determination to regulate XRP as a security. In the interim, legal expert John Deaton and pro-XRP counsel Bill Morgan have both accused the SEC of overreach and questioned the agency’s motivations.
Deaton cited a recent instance of misconduct by the SEC in the context of Digital Licensing, which served to exacerbate skepticism regarding the regulator’s methodology.
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