Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced yesterday that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is ending its long-running lawsuit against Ripple, marking a major victory for Ripple and the broader cryptocurrency market.
"I'm finally able to announce that this case has ended. It's over," Garlinghouse said in a video posted on X (formerly Twitter) on March 19. He described the SEC’s decision as a “long overdue surrender.”
Source: X
Following Garlinghouse’s announcement, XRP price surged by 14% to $2.55, according to CoinGecko price data at the time. The XRP rally sparked renewed interest across the crypto community, with many seeing this as a bullish signal for altcoins and a pivotal moment for crypto adoption.
The SEC lawsuit against Ripple began in December 2020, alleging that Ripple had conducted an unregistered securities offering through its XRP token sales. In July 2023, a federal court ruling concluded that XRP sales on public exchanges did not qualify as securities, while institutional sales did. As a result, Ripple Labs was ordered to pay a $125 million fine, significantly lower than the SEC’s original $2 billion penalty request.
Though the SEC filed an appeal of the decision, Ripple now states that the Commission is preparing to withdraw its appeal, subject to the official Commission vote. Meanwhile, a cross appeal by Ripple to contest the institutional fine is still under review.
Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer, Stuart Alderoty, called the development a “resounding victory.” He stated on X, “Ripple is now in the driver’s seat, and we’ll evaluate how best to pursue our cross appeal. Regardless, today is a day to celebrate.”
This legal milestone coincides with a broader shift in U.S. crypto regulation under President Donald Trump’s second term, which began in January 2025. The SEC has dropped lawsuits against crypto exchanges Coinbase and Kraken, and may soon resolve its civil fraud case against Justin Sun, an advisor to a Trump-backed crypto project.
In a significant development, President Trump nominated Paul Atkins, a crypto-friendly Washington lawyer, to replace Gary Gensler as SEC Chair, signaling a pro-crypto stance and a potentially favorable regulatory landscape for the digital asset industry.
