Ripple and SEC’s Ongoing Battle Could Tangle With 2024 US Election

On Saturday, Ripple CTO David Schwartz responded to a question posted to defense attorney James Filan on whether the SEC can appeal after the fact to the appellate Courts should Judge Torres deny the SEC motion.

Schwartz had this response,

“Yes. A party that loses on any claim or issue in their suit is entitled to appeal any adverse rulings at the conclusion of the suit. The SEC is asking permission to appeal here because the suit is not complete yet for any party.”

Schwartz added,

“There are lots of little rulings all through a Court case and an appeal typically takes at least a year. If each ruling were appealed by the losing side as it happened, you’d either have to pause the original case for a year every time a party appealed, making it take for ever, or you’d have lots of overlapping appeals both sides would have to deal with as the actual case is still ongoing.”

Schwartz pointed out there are exceptions for unusual cases, where the Court case would pause until the conclusion to an appeal. While the SEC is asking for proceedings to stop until the end of the appeal process, Ripple is asking for the two cases to run in parallel.

US Election Day Becomes a Factor

The SEC v Ripple case has been ongoing since December 2020. Considering the appeal process could take up to a year, a pause in the SEC v Ripple case to address the appeal could see the SEC v Ripple case extend into 2025.

From an investor perspective, there is no immediate threat of an SEC victory in the appeal process or the SEC v Ripple case, providing XRP price support as investors digested the SEC filing from Friday.

Interestingly, the US Presidential Election could become a factor in 2024.

Former SEC Chief John Reed Stark believes the US crypto regulatory landscape could materially change after the US Presidential Election. While discussing the likelihood of the SEC approving the BTC-Spot ETF applications, the impact of a shift in the regulatory landscape would be wide-reaching.

Stark had this to say,

“If Hester Pierce becomes acting Chair of the SEC, given her lengthy track record of dissent and opposition to most crypto-related SEC actions, the world should expect that most US SEC crypto-related enforcement and most crypto-related SEC disruption would grind to a screeching halt.”

While any delay tactics in approving the BTC-Spot ETFs will adversely influence investor sentiment, the SEC Chair may want to wrap up the SEC v Ripple case before Election Day. If the SEC v Ripple case is still proceeding, a Republican Party victory may also affect the SEC’s position in the ongoing SEC v Ripple case.

The Sunday Session

It will likely be a quiet Sunday session, with no Court rulings or motions for investors to consider. The lack of external influence will leave XRP and the broader market in the hands of the crypto news wires.

US lawmaker commentary and SEC activity will continue to draw interest, while SEC v Coinbase (COIN) and SEC v Binance-related news will also move the dial.

XRP Price Action

This morning, XRP was up 0.06% to $0.5202. A mixed start to the weekend saw XRP fall to an early low of $0.5168 before rising to a high of $0.5209.

Daily Chart

The Daily Chart showed XRP/USD holding above the $0.4920 – $0.4780 support band. Despite the bullish Saturday, XRP remained below 50-day and 200-day EMAs, sending bearish near and longer-term price signals.

Looking at the 14-Daily RSI, 28.66 shows XRP in oversold territory. The RSI aligns with the EMAs supporting a fall through the $0.4920 – $0.4780 support band to target sub-$0.47. However, an XRP breakout from the 200-day EMA would give the bulls a run at $0.55 and the $0.5750 – $0.5900 resistance band.

4-Hourly Chart

Looking at the 4-Hourly Chart, XRP remains above the $0.4920 – $0.4780 support band, with sub-$0.47 in view.

After four bearish sessions from five, XRP continues to sit below the 50-day and 200-day EMAs, reaffirming the bearish near and longer-term price signals.

The 34.82 14-4H RSI reflects bearish sentiment, with selling pressure outweighing buying pressure. Significantly, the RSI aligns with the EMAs, signaling a fall through the $0.4920 – $0.4780 support band. A fall through the Support band would give the bears a run at sub-$0.47.