The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been involved in a legal battle against Ripple Labs, and there have been debates on the likelihood of the court granting the SEC’s motion for an interlocutory appeal. Former SEC official Marc Fagel shared his opinion on the matter, stating that the specific requirements for an interlocutory appeal are hard to meet and therefore, he believes the odds are against the SEC.
Fagel made this statement in response to a question posed by a member of the XRP community. The user asked for Fagel’s opinion on the likelihood of the court granting the SEC’s request for an interlocutory appeal and if certain factors could influence the court’s decision. These factors included the importance of the SEC’s case against Ripple for the crypto industry and the conflicting rulings in the Terraform and Ripple cases.
In the Terraform case, the judge determined that cryptocurrencies could be securities regardless of whether they were sold directly to investors. In the Ripple case, Judge Torres ruled that Ripple’s programmatic sales and other distributions did not constitute investment contracts. Despite the odds being against the SEC, Fagel acknowledged that these factors mentioned by the user could increase the Commission’s chances of being granted an interlocutory appeal if the court considers them.
Many in the crypto community have opined that the SEC’s losses against Ripple and Grayscale indicate a failure in the Commission’s clampdown on the industry. However, Fagel believes that the SEC’s crypto enforcement actions have been largely successful. While the SEC suffered a partial loss in the summary judgment given by Judge Analisa Torres, it was able to prove that Ripple illegally raised $700 million in unregistered securities sales.
Related Post
Fagel acknowledges that the SEC still faces tough battles ahead in its crypto enforcement actions. In particular, the “exchange case” poses novel and thorny questions, making it difficult for the SEC to make its argument stick in court. This likely refers to the SEC’s cases against Binance and Coinbase, especially with Coinbase filing a motion to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds that the Commission does not have regulatory jurisdiction over crypto sales on exchanges.
Overall, there is uncertainty regarding whether the court will grant the SEC’s motion for an interlocutory appeal in its legal battle against Ripple Labs. Former SEC official Marc Fagel believes that the odds are against the SEC, but certain factors could potentially sway the court’s decision. The SEC’s enforcement actions in the crypto industry have seen mixed results, with some losses and partial victories. Moving forward, the SEC is expected to face tough battles in its ongoing efforts to regulate the crypto space, including its cases against Binance and Coinbase.
