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Ripple accused of artificially boosting XRP price with bot activity, court documents allege manipulation

|ByEkta Mourya

  • XRP price maintained its uptrend, trading at $0.58 on Thursday. 
  • Crypto expert on X cites the document that states Ripple was using bots to stabilize and boost XRP price in 2015 and 2016.
  • Ripple is on board with SEC’s request for deadline extension in lawsuit, both sides prepare remedies-briefs. 

XRP price continued its rally towards the $0.64 target on Thursday. The altcoin climbed to $0.58, sustained above key support at $0.55, maintaining its uptrend. Crypto experts uncovered court documents that allege Ripple used bots, market maker GSR Markets did as directed and likely stabilized or pushed XRP price higher in 2015 and 2016. 

The SEC v. Ripple lawsuit is likely to see further delay in its outcome as both parties are onboard a deadline extension, requested by the regulator. 

Also read: XRP climbs to $0.58 as SEC pushes for deadline extension in Ripple lawsuit

Daily Digest Market Movers: Ripple accused of using bots to manipulate XRP price

  • In a recent development in the SEC v. Ripple lawsuit, an active crypto community member on X, behind the X handle @DarkhorseDNME4 shared court documents tied to the legal battle, that allege the payment remittance firm used bots to inflate the altcoin’s price. 
  • Crypto expert behind the X handle @WKanheman, a prominent Ripple proponent, commented on the discovery and explained that the document states the cross-border payment remittance firm directed a market maker to use bots and stabilize or boost the altcoin’s price in 2015 and 2016. This finding could influence the outcome of the lawsuit as it is an allegation of price manipulation through a market maker. 
  • The tweet thread on X identifies GSR markets as the market maker involved in alleged XRP price manipulation. 
  • The SEC recently asked the court for a deadline extension in remedies-brief filing and the payment firm is onboard with it, as it offers Ripple more time to file its opposing brief to the SEC’s filing.
  • Bitcoin’s price rally past $61,700 has likely catalyzed XRP price gains. 

Technical Analysis: XRP price sustains uptrend driven by catalysts

XRP price sustained its rally to $0.58 and the altcoin is set to rally towards its target at $0.64 driven by catalysts in the market. Bitcoin’s rally past $61,700 on Thursday has pushed the overall crypto market capitalization higher. Further, Bitcoin’s price rally has catalyzed a bull run, as capital rotates to top altcoins in the ecosystem. 

The recent lawsuit developments are likely favorable for Ripple, further catalyzing gains in XRP. XRP price is up 2.31% in the past 24 hours. 

The Moving Average Convergence/ Divergence (MACD) indicator and the Awesome Oscillator (AO) support XRP price gains and suggest the uptrend is intact.

XRP/USDT 1-day chart 

A daily candlestick close below the 50% retracement of XRP’s decline from its 2024 high at $0.5629 could invalidate the bullish thesis for the altcoin. An interruption in Bitcoin’s uptrend could jeopardize XRP’s recent gains. 

XRP price could find support at the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level at $0.5446. 

SEC vs Ripple lawsuit FAQs

Is XRP a security?

It depends on the transaction, according to a court ruling released on July 14:

For institutional investors or over-the-counter sales, XRP is a security.
For retail investors who bought the token via programmatic sales on exchanges, on-demand liquidity services and other platforms, XRP is not a security.

How does the ruling affect Ripple in its legal battle against the SEC?

The United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Ripple and its executives of raising more than $1.3 billion through an unregistered asset offering of the XRP token.

While the judge ruled that programmatic sales aren’t considered securities, sales of XRP tokens to institutional investors are indeed investment contracts. In this last case, Ripple did breach the US securities law and will need to keep litigating over the around $729 million it received under written contracts.

What are the implications of the ruling for the overall crypto industry?

The ruling offers a partial win for both Ripple and the SEC, depending on what one looks at.

Ripple gets a big win over the fact that programmatic sales aren’t considered securities, and this could bode well for the broader crypto sector as most of the assets eyed by the SEC’s crackdown are handled by decentralized entities that sold their tokens mostly to retail investors via exchange platforms, experts say.

Still, the ruling doesn’t help much to answer the key question of what makes a digital asset a security, so it isn’t clear yet if this lawsuit will set precedent for other open cases that affect dozens of digital assets. Topics such as which is the right degree of decentralization to avoid the “security” label or where to draw the line between institutional and programmatic sales are likely to persist.

Is the SEC stance toward crypto assets likely to change after the ruling?

The SEC has stepped up its enforcement actions toward the blockchain and digital assets industry, filing charges against platforms such as Coinbase or Binance for allegedly violating the US Securities law. The SEC claims that the majority of crypto assets are securities and thus subject to strict regulation.

While defendants can use parts of Ripple’s ruling in their favor, the SEC can also find reasons in it to keep its current strategy of regulation by enforcement.

Can the court ruling be overturned?

The court decision is a partial summary judgment. The ruling can be appealed once a final judgment is issued or if the judge allows it before then. The case is in a pretrial phase, in which both Ripple and the SEC still have the chance to settle.

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