- XRP price hit a high of $0.5590 on Thursday as Bitcoin’s price rally fueled gains in top altcoins.
- XRP trade volume nearly doubled this week, climbing to 1.46 billion on February 15.
- Pro-Ripple attorney condemns the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple in response to Chair Gary Gensler’s comments on crypto.
XRP price hit a peak of $0.5590, early on Thursday. Altcoins like XRP noted gains as Bitcoin price rallied past resistance to $52,500. Bitcoin's bull run ushered a marketwide recovery in altcoin prices.
Apart from the Bitcoin-effect, XRP on-chain activity likely also helped catalyze the recent gains alongside other developments in the Ripple ecosystem.
Also read: Bitcoin inches closer to $52,000, liquidates over $72 million in short positions
Daily Digest Market Movers: XRP on-chain metrics show surge in activity
- According to data from crypto intelligence tracker, Santiment, the Volume in XRP nearly doubled from 578.41 million on February 10 to 1.48 billion on February 15. The surge in Volume implies the demand and relevance of XRP has increased among market participants.
 [11.00.13, 15 Feb, 2024]-638435743135462047.png)
XRP Volume. Source: Santiment
- Ripple recently revealed its plans to expand into the custody business with its acquisition of Standard Custody. As the payment giant pivots from its cross-border payment remittance business and expands to related infrastructure services for financial firms, it is likely to boost the demand for XRPLedger’s services. Find out more about it here.
- Bitcoin price rallied to a peak of $52,500 on Thursday, catalyzing a rally in altcoins in the ecosystem. XRP price climbed to a peak of $0.5590, alongside BTC.
Technical Analysis: XRP price rallies towards its $0.6000 target
XRP price is currently in an uptrend. The altcoin is rallying towards its $0.6000 target, a psychologically important level for the asset. XRP price faces resistance at its 50% Fibonacci Retracement level of the decline from the 2024 peak of $0.6405 to its January low, at $0.5629.
XRP price's rally to $0.6000 represents a climb of over 10%. The green bars on the Moving Average Convergence/ Divergence (MACD) and Awesome Oscillator (AO) indicators, suggest that XRP price uptrend is intact and there is positive momentum.
XRP/USDT 1-day chart
A daily candlestick close below the $0.5000 level could invalidate the bullish thesis and signal a sweep of the January low at $0.4853 before another possible XRP price recovery.
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.
Information on these pages contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Markets and instruments profiled on this page are for informational purposes only and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy or sell in these assets. You should do your own thorough research before making any investment decisions. FXStreet does not in any way guarantee that this information is free from mistakes, errors, or material misstatements. It also does not guarantee that this information is of a timely nature. Investing in Open Markets involves a great deal of risk, including the loss of all or a portion of your investment, as well as emotional distress. All risks, losses and costs associated with investing, including total loss of principal, are your responsibility. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FXStreet nor its advertisers. The author will not be held responsible for information that is found at the end of links posted on this page.
If not otherwise explicitly mentioned in the body of the article, at the time of writing, the author has no position in any stock mentioned in this article and no business relationship with any company mentioned. The author has not received compensation for writing this article, other than from FXStreet.
FXStreet and the author do not provide personalized recommendations. The author makes no representations as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability of this information. FXStreet and the author will not be liable for any errors, omissions or any losses, injuries or damages arising from this information and its display or use. Errors and omissions excepted.
The author and FXStreet are not registered investment advisors and nothing in this article is intended to be investment advice.
Recommended Content
Editors’ Picks
Celebrity meme coins controversy continues amid Pump.fun revenue dominance
Pump.fun outperformed the Ethereum blockchain on Tuesday after raking in $1.99 million. Following this achievement, a meme coin based on actress Sydney Sweeney was the subject of controversy after its developers dumped their bags on investors.
PEPE's on-chain metrics indicate potential rally after weeks of silence
PEPE has struggled to see any significant price move after reaching an all-time high in May. Increased adoption rate and low MVRV ratio indicate a bullish run may be on the horizon. A single PEPE outflow from Binance worth $14.7 million gives credence to signs of bullish expectation.
Ethereum has failed to overcome key resistance despite bullish sentiment surrounding ETH ETF
Ethereum (ETH) is down more than 1.4% on Tuesday following another ETH sale from the Ethereum Foundation. Meanwhile, crypto exchange Gemini's recent report reveals that ETH ETF could see about $5 billion in net inflows within six months of launch.
Crypto community blasts Polkadot following report of treasury spending
Polkadot reports $87 million of treasury spending during H1. Crypto community members expressed harsh feelings toward the DOT team's high spending. DOT is up more than 2% in the past 24 hours but risks correction following the report.
Bitcoin: BTC price correction could end in July, according to seasonal data
Bitcoin (BTC) price appears poised for a decline this week, influenced by slight outflows in US spot ETFs, selling activity among BTC miners, and a combined transfer of 4,690.28 BTC to centralized exchanges by the US and German governments.