May 20 is an important day in the long-running legal battle between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple. The Commission is expected to file a response to the crypto firm’s motion, which seeks to protect the company’s business interests.
SEC To File Opposition To Ripple’s Sealing Requests
A court filing shows that the Commission must file its letter brief in opposition to Ripple’s motion to seal by May 20. Ripple had filed the motion on May 13 in line with the scheduling order, which stipulated that date as the deadline for both parties to file a motion to seal any document related to the remedies stage.
Ripple had revealed in their May 13 filing that they had consulted with the SEC before making the sealing requests. The crypto firm further claimed that the Commission “indicated that they consent to certain of Ripple’s requests, but intend to oppose others.” Therefore, based on that revelation, the Commission will likely agree to some of Ripple’s quests.
One part that the Commission seems to have consented to is the redaction of the names of some of the firm’s business partners, whose partnership with Ripple hasn’t been officially disclosed. However, Ripple is asking for more than just that as the company seeks to seal the identities of third parties whose identities have no bearing on the outcome of the case.
The crypto firm has also requested that the court seal or redact certain documents that reflect or show Ripple’s audited financial statements or other financial documents. The company stated that those documents are non-public and disclosing them “would cause significant harm to the company’s business interests and competitive standing.”
Meanwhile, Ripple also seeks to seal or redact information about its confidential business relationships. They argued that the redactions are “narrow” and only relate to “specific financial and pricing terms” that it had negotiated with its business partners. The crypto firm noted that its requests are similar to the proposed redactions that the court granted during the summary judgment.
Joy Is Coming For The Crypto Industry
The cause of Ripple’s legal woes against the SEC has been the lack of regulatory clarity for the crypto industry in the US. However, that is about to change soon enough, as the US Congress will soon vote on the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century (FIT21) bill, which would provide regulatory clarity for crypto companies.
If passed, the bill will establish the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as the primary agency responsible for regulating crypto assets. This will provide a huge turnaround, considering that the SEC has, for the longest time, extended its jurisdiction to all crypto-related matters and sought to clamp down on crypto companies through its enforcement actions.
Featured image created using Dall.E, chart from Tradingview.com