XRP Ripple Settlement with SEC "Recovers $75 Million in Fines", Experts: Indicates Approval of XRP Spot ETF

Ripple announced on Tuesday that it had reached a preliminary settlement with the SEC, with a $125 million fine cut to $50 million, and a four-year legal battle is finally coming to an end, with Nate Geraci, president of The ETF Store, saying that with the Ripple case over, it is clear that it is only a matter of time before the XRP spot ETF is approved. (Synopsis: Ripple "landed solidly" in the United States: SEC lawsuit ended and began to prosper home business) (Background supplement: XRP market value surpasses USDT to become the third largest token) Ripple CEO is optimistic about the launch of XRP ETF at the end of this year, does not rule out IPO) In 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Ripple of illegally raising $1.3 billion through the sale of XRP, accusing XRP of being an unregistered security, and after several years of litigation, the court ruled against Ripple last August Selling XRP to retail investors through exchanges is not illegal, but selling XRP to institutional investors violates securities laws and imposes a fine of $125 million. The SEC originally intended to appeal, but after the Trump administration took office, the regulatory attitude changed, and Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced last week that the SEC determined to withdraw its appeal of the Ripple case and end the ongoing litigation since 2020. Ripple Reaches Preliminary Settlement with SEC Stuart Alderoty further announced Tuesday that Ripple Labs has reached a preliminary settlement with the SEC, which is expected to end with both parties withdrawing their appeals and the SEC refunding $75 million of the $125 million fine Ripple paid last year, keeping only $50 million: Last week, the SEC agreed to withdraw the appeal unconditionally. Ripple has now agreed to withdraw its appeal, and the SEC will retain $50 million of the $125 million fine (which has been deposited in cash into an interest-bearing escrow account), and the balance will be returned to Ripple. The SEC will also petition the court to lift the standard injunction previously imposed at the SEC's request. All of this is subject to committee voting, final document drafting and standard court procedures. The final crossing of t’s and dotting of i’s – and what should be my last update on SEC v Ripple ever… Last week, the SEC agreed to drop its appeal without conditions. @Ripple has now agreed to drop its cross-appeal. The SEC will keep $50M of the $125M fine (already in an... — Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) March 25, 2025 Foreshadowing XRP spot ETF coming? Nate Geraci, president of The ETF Store, tweeted that with the end of the Ripple case, it means that the approval of the XRP spot ETF is obviously only a matter of time, and BlackRock, Fidelity and others are expected to participate: XRP is currently the third largest non-stablecoin crypto asset by market capitalization. The biggest ETF issuers don't lose sight of this. Ripple lawsuit coming to end… Seems obvious spot XRP ETF approval simply matter of time IMO. And yes, I expect BlackRock, Fidelity, etc to all be involved. XRP currently 3rd largest non-stablecoin crypto asset by market cap. Largest ETF issuers aren’t going to ignore this. — Nate Geraci (@NateGeraci) March 26, 2025 Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse predicted last week that the market could see an "XRP ETF approval wave" in the second half of 2025, and more than 10 institutions have filed XRP ETF applications with the SEC, including Well-known investment firms such as Bitwise and Franklin Templeton. Related reports From cryptocurrency to space colonization" Ripple founder spends $1 billion to build a private space station: centrifugal force achieves artificial gravity The SEC v. Ripple case rumors that the "final result" will soon come out, and Ripple is expected to be acquitted and not fined for 4 years? Former SEC official: SEC is likely to suspend lawsuits against Binance and Ripple, completely stop cryptocurrency-related investigations "Ripple settles SEC "gets back $75 million fine", expert: Indicates that XRP spot ETF will approve This article was first published in BlockTempo's "Dynamic Trend - The Most Influential Blockchain News Media".