A federal judge has ordered Ripple Labs to pay a $125 million civil penalty, concluding a lawsuit brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
On August 7, Judge Analisa Torres of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued the ruling, resolving the legal battle that began in December 2020.
The SEC had claimed that Ripple violated securities laws by selling XRP tokens without registering them as securities. Both sides proposed different penalties, leading to this decision by the Court.
Ripple wanted a maximum fine of ten million dollars, while SEC demanded two billion dollars. However, Judge Torres’ ruling has required Ripple to pay $125 million within 30 days.
This decision follows a notable ruling in July 2023, where Judge Torres determined that XRP was not a security in the context of programmatic sales on exchanges. This earlier ruling was a significant factor in the current ruling.
Although the court observed multiple breaches of federal securities legislation by Ripple, it noted the absence of fraud or misappropriation allegations. Additionally, the SEC has also failed to prove that Ripple’s unregistered sales caused significant investor losses.
Ripple will be able to make the payment electronically or by certified check. The SEC will hold the funds, along with any earned interest, and will require court approval to distribute them.
Following the announcement of the settlement, the price of XRP rose by 22%, trading at $0.6238. This increase came after the token had hit a one-month low of $0.4315.
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