Payment token Ripple (XRP) pulled ahead of the market today after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) copped another blow in its long-running litigation against XRP developer Ripple Labs.
Since 2021, the SEC has been suing Ripple Labs for offering unregistered securities, an allegation partially shot down by the courts in July.
Judge Analisa Torres ruled that XRP is only a security when offered to institutional, not retail, investors, something the SEC swiftly sought to appeal.
That appeal, however, has been rejected by the courts, marking another win for Ripple Labs.
XRP jumped 5% higher as a result, though Wednesday trades have been considerably more muted.
The courts are packed with crypto-related hearings this week, with FTX founder and former chief executive Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial on fraud and money laundering charges well underway.
The jury is expected to hear testimony from former FTX and sister firm Alameda Research employees, including Bankman-Fried’s one-time girlfriend Caroline Ellison.
Bitcoin (BTC), meanwhile, continued to trend lower yesterday, further chipping away at the eye-catching gains made at the start of October.
As it stands, the BTC/USDT pair is swapping around the $27,400 price point, with buying support firmly planted at a flat 27k, per Binance’s order book.
Bitcoin remains 2% lower over six months – Source: tradingview.com
The second-largest cryptocurrency Ethereum (ETH) also trended downwards on Tuesday, with further losses mounting this morning.
In the broader altcoin space, Solana (SOL) remains the top performer among the blue chips, while Binance’s BNB token has fallen into the red week on week.
Global cryptocurrency market cap dipped overnight to £1.08 trillion, while bitcoin dominance remains strong at 50.4%.