The Court has asked Ripple to settle dues worth $125 million with regulators; however, the payment is swinging back and forth. The most recent developments suggest that Ripple will only proceed with the settlement if the US Securities & Exchange Commission does not file an appeal by the beginning of October this year, that is 2024. It is unlikely that the agency will file an appeal, for it will be directed to the Supreme Court, where it could lose the case entirely.
Crypto enthusiasts expect the Commission to take the settlement instead of filing another appeal. This aligns with the current political sentiment, with Kamala Harris coming out in support of the industry. Brad Garlinghouse, the Chief Executive Officer of Ripple, believes that the SEC will not file another appeal, while former SEC lawyers are confident that it could happen any time within the deadline of 60 days. Ripple Labs has sent a letter to the Court, requesting to put a stay on the settlement.
Ripple and the SEC agreed to allocate 11% of monetary judgment to the trust, with the amount coming 30 days after the appeal deadline, or after it has concluded. If the case is appealed and Ripple wins in its argument, it will be required to post a bond that secures the cost, which will be assessed as part of the appeal under FRAP 39.
All that aside, the token has risen by 0.21% in the last 24 hours, reaching a value of $0.554 at the time of writing this article. The token has also increased by 19.46% over the last 30 days. However, it has declined by 3.81% in the last 7 days. Experts predict that XRP will surpass $0.8 by the end of this year. Alternatively, it could go as high as $1 maximum by December 31, 2024.
Near-term XRP predictions are projecting a bull run. The next 5 days are estimated to see a surge of 18.56%, taking XRP to $0.661252. The next 30 days could see a jump of 20.20%, bringing XRP to a value of $0.670397.
Whether the SEC files an appeal or Ripple settles in accordance with the Court’s order is still up in the air. The community believes that a settlement is more likely, but former lawyers of the agency are supporting the appeal. The SEC could end up on the losing side, but it could decide to take that chance and see how things progress.
This is the same thing that has put the plans to have its ETF on hold. Following the approval of Spot Ether ETF applications, XRP emerged as a leading contender for its own ETF. The ongoing lawsuit has cast doubt over that plan, possibly pushing the chances to the next year or the year after that, depending on how the lawsuit progresses.