The battle between the SEC and Ripple Labs is deep into the championship rounds.
It won't be long until we see the judges' scorecards.
In my mind, the question isn't if Ripple will come out on top.
It's when Dirty Gary's corner will be forced to throw in the towel.
After all, they've been outboxed and outclassed at every turn.
And with time ticking on the clock,
the SEC is pinning their hopes on one final opening,
one last shot to land that crucial haymaker.
In this video, we'll be taking a look at the latest developments in this ongoing matchup
and why these next few months could be pivotal for both XRP holders
and the entire crypto space.
Let's get it!
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You've got to hand it to the SEC.
They seem to be channeling Rocky Balboa.
I mean, they've taken some serious damage in recent months,
but they somehow just keep fighting.
Earlier this week, Judge Netburn granted the SEC's request to extend the expert discovery deadline
from November 12, 2021 to January 14, 2022,
an extension the SEC hopes will buy them time,
time to find evidence that XRP was marketed as a security,
as well as more time to answer the nearly 30,000 requests for admission presented by Ripple.
Ripple's lawyers sought to counter this proposed deadline of December 10,
a reasonable and achievable four weeks to complete expert depositions,
but the judge won't budge,
and, of course, the man representing tens of thousands of XRP holders also weighed in.
Ever wonder what you get if you cross Walter Wide and Agent Hank Schrader?
Well, I'll tell you. You get this guy.
A real life BA,
Super Lawyer and XRP legend, John Deaton.
As he explained in a letter to Judge Torres,
Ripple's objection focuses on how the freezing of XRP markets in the United States
continues to impact Ripple,
but also pointed out that the negative impact on XRP holders themselves
is even more profound,
something that I've argued for the entire last year.
After all, in addition to owning XRP on exchanges that have been forced to delist,
many are held in retirement accounts that have been effectively frozen due to the hearing,
meaning regular holders continued to be punished,
unfairly prevented from trading, selling or transferring their XRP.
And yet the SEC claimed to be in the business of investor protection.
Go figure.
Anyway, the extension means expert discovery can now continue into 2022,
something Judge Torres claims will not affect the schedule to resolve this case.
Right.
And I'm Satoshi Nakamoto.
It's a bit like a pilot saying that in spite of the 7-hour delay,
the plane will be landing on schedule.
It doesn't add up.
Something Jeremy Hogan pointed out just isn't possible.
It has to affect the schedule for breathing summary judgment,
with a resolution that could theoretically drag us into March or even May of next year.
But that's a feint.
Don't get fooled.
But I don't want to give the wrong impression.
Because last week also saw Ripple scoring some major points against the Goon Squad.
How?
Well, unfortunately for He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named,
Judge Netburn is ordering the SEC to explain, among other things,
how the Howey Test applies to XRP, status of Ether and Bitcoin,
and the sale of XRP as investment contracts.
Ouch!
Attorney Hogan put it best,
"UH-OH. The SEC is going to be forced to admit that there is nothing in any of these contracts
that created an expectation of profits by purchasers of XRP.
That's a big problem for the SEC."
And good news for Ripple!
Because for XRP to be a security,
there has to have been some kind of investment contract,
meaning regular people must have bought XRP in return for a promise
that Ripple would work to increase the token value.
But here's the thing.
No such contracts exist.
So the SEC is going to have to pull off some pretty impressive regulatory gymnastics
to explain "Howey" XRP passes the securities test
without admitting the truth.
But the only line of attack they have is a potential marketing case against Ripple Labs
with zero evidence to back it up.
Even my dear Uncle Brian agrees.
Because not only is the Ripple case going better than expected,
the SEC is realizing that attacking crypto is politically unpopular
because it harms consumers.
In short, the exact opposite of what they're supposed to be doing.
Meaning the harder they go after crypto in general,
the more obviously they're shooting themselves in the foot.
I just f****** shot myself.
He's not the only bald billionaire giving his two cents on the matter
as Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz tweeted that the XRP Army was damn resilient.
Citing the phenomenon of community identity is such a powerful new force in the space.
All we need now is the baldest billionaire of them all,
Lex Luthor,
to speak out and we'll have the full set.
But to get serious for a second,
this recent article from Forbes gives a great account of the situation.
It talks about how in going after Ripple,
the SEC found themselves in a battle they weren't prepared for,
an uprising they didn't see coming,
how Washington has been put on the backfoot by the scale and diversity of crypto investor class
and the industry they support,
and how the uprising against the SEC is not particularly pro Ripple
but a backlash against regulation by enforcement and deliberate market confusion
that has exasperated investors and driven developers overseas.
It also goes into the clear inconsistencies at the heart of it all.
The fact that the SEC alleges that XRP,
a token that operates on a fully decentralized ledger,
is a security with no utility other than as an investment contract in a company.
Not to mention the Ether problem.
The fact that Ethereum held an unregistered ICO in 2014 with zero repercussions!
And the fact that William Hinman's infamous Ethereum speech
was implicitly on behalf of the SEC!
Just ask former Commissioner Robert Jackson.
Huge shout-out to Digital Asset Investor by the way.
This channel and its amazing community do a great job of finding all these videos
exposing the misconduct, hypocrisy and double standards within the SEC.
And shout-out to all of you, the XRP Army.
One of the fatal flaws at the heart of the SEC's case
is that the XRP holders were investing in something based on profit potential
and not the real world use case.
In fact, of all the crypto communities out there,
XRP is easily the most passionate and knowledgeable
about the very specific use cases and utility of the token,
a use case the SEC likes to pretend is beyond the understanding of retail investors.
Woooo.
It couldn't be more wrong.
Because they know exactly what the XRP Ledger and token are capable of
that they're so bullish on the long-term potential.
I mean, you've always stood a super tough period with all the litigation
that it's only strengthened your conviction.
Talk about diamond hands!
The XRP Army is just not selling. Why?
Because they know that while the legal fight dominates headlines,
Ripple continues to make unbelievable headway behind the scenes.
Check it out.
This week alone, we've seen major partnerships announced
including between Ripple and Pyypl
to introduce RippleNet's first ODL or On-Demand Liquidity solution
for cross-border payments in the Middle East or the MENA region.
This follows on from Ripple's earlier partnership this year with Tranglo,
which is seeing their ODL be extended throughout Southeast Asia as well.
The ODL solution uses XRP as a bridge between fiat
offering instant seamless payments between jurisdictions
and some of the most valuable remittance corridors in the world.
Oh, and in case you missed it,
the Bank of England is a customer!
And Warren Buffett just poured another half billion into Brazil's RippleNet Nubank.
This is why the XRP Army is so strong.
Because they see the bigger picture.
Namely that Ripple and XRP are poised to become a global settlement layer
within the legacy system.
That means lightning fast, borderless crypto-based payments from legacy finance.
It's major stuff.
So whether you're an XRP holder or not,
we all need the SEC to fail and fail badly.
I have no worries that's going to happen.
Because much as I believe a settlement will be coming sooner rather than later,
so much as I believe that it's effectively a done deal,
it's what happens next that we need to be wary of.
And I don't just mean a face-melting pump from XRP.
Who the SEC goes after and on what basis,
these will be key battlegrounds in the years ahead,
which is why we all need to stick together.
The XRP Army is already incredibly powerful,
but a united and decentralized crypto army?
Now, that's quite literally unstoppable.
So good luck, Skeletor!
You're going to need it.
That's all I got.
Be blessed.
BitBoy out.