XRP isn’t itself a security; it depends on how it’s sold. So said a federal judge last Thursday in the SEC vs. Ripple case and the implications are significant. Jake Chervinsky, chief policy officer at the Blockchain Association, and lawyer Kayvan Sadeghi, partner at Jenner & Block, join the show to discuss two major ramifications. One: U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres dealt a major blow to the legal theory underpinning the SEC’s case against Coinbase. Two: This order really “lights a fire” under U.S. lawmakers to act on a pair of crypto bills in Congress.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.

Show highlights:

  • why this is an “extraordinary victory” for the industry, according to Jake
  • whether Judge Torres made the right decision
  • how the SEC could seek an interlocutory appeal to halt the case, though it’s unlikely
  • what are the pending items in the case that need to be resolved
  • why the order that Judge Torres issued is not a final judgment
  • why it is more important to look at the transaction, not at the nature of the asset, to determine whether something should be deemed a security
  • whether the SEC has the authority to call digital assets securities
  • the significance of the “major questions doctrine”
  • how the order in the Ripple case will affect other cases like the Coinbase one
  • whether exchanges should re-list XRP
  • why this case could be instrumental in steering the direction of crypto regulation in the U.S.
  • whether other crypto tokens like SOL or MATIC should feel relieved with this new ruling
  • why Jake says that this case will speed up the chances of crypto legislation getting passed
  • what the differences are between the current crypto bills that are being proposed
  • whether SEC Chair Gary Gensler should recuse himself from enforcement actions in the crypto industry

Thank you to our sponsors!

Guests:

Links:

READ THE EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE