Ripple may have just achieved a significant victory in its ongoing legal battle with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC has accused Ripple of illegally selling the XRP token without proper registration as a security, and one of the central issues in this lawsuit is a controversial 2018 speech by Bill Hinman, a former SEC director.
In his speech, Hinman stated that he did not view Bitcoin or Ethereum as securities, saying, “Putting aside the fundraising that accompanied the creation of Ether, based on my understanding of the present state of Ether, the Ethereum network and its decentralized structure, current offers and sales of Ether are not securities transactions.” Ripple cited this statement back in 2021, arguing that if the SEC does not view Bitcoin or Ethereum as securities, then XRP should not be classified as one either.
Ripple subsequently filed a Freedom of Information Act request, seeking to obtain documents detailing how Hinman arrived at this conclusion. However, the SEC countered that at times, Hinman’s speech represented his personal views rather than the Commission’s official policy, asserting that the documents tied to the speech were protected by internal deliberation privacy and filing a “motion to seal” to keep them from public view.
Yet, on Tuesday, Judge Analisa Torres denied the SEC’s motion to seal these documents, stating that “they are judicial documents subject to a strong presumption of public access.” Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse took to Twitter, celebrating the decision as “Another win for transparency!” and indicating that we could see “unredacted” Hinman emails soon.
This ruling has stirred up a range of reactions, with many in the crypto community finding it promising. On the one hand, it could foster better understanding and more open dialogue around regulatory issues concerning cryptocurrencies. On the other hand, there is an evident risk associated with releasing potentially private or sensitive information in such a high-profile legal battle.
Interestingly, this isn’t the first time the SEC has been denied this motion to seal the documents. Last year, a judge also rejected the SEC’s attempt to shield the same documents in response to a court order for the SEC to produce them.
As the Ripple lawsuit continues to unfold, it will undeniably bring valuable discussions to the forefront. It remains to be seen whether further developments in the case will pave the way for clearer and fairer regulations for the crypto industry or simply amplify existing conflicts and controversies.
Source: Decrypt
