By
Steve Muchoki
April 19th, 2024
Ripple revealed it now has the long-awaited Hinman documents containing a speech about ETH, as it looks to secure victory against the SEC.
Ripple is inching closer to victory as it continues its ongoing and long-drawn-out battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). According to a recent disclosure by general counsel Stuart Alderoty, Ripple finally has the elusive Hinman documents in their possession. Alderoty’s confirmation comes after “18 months and 6 court orders,” although he also added that the documents will remain confidential at the SEC’s insistence. Furthermore, the Ripple general counsel emphasized the importance of obtaining these documents for the case. According to a statement he posted to Twitter:
“Over 18 months and 6 court orders later, we finally have the Hinman docs (internal SEC emails and drafts of his infamous 2018 speech). While they remain confidential for now (at the SEC’s insistence), I can say that it was well worth the fight to get them.”
“I’ve always felt good about our legal arguments, and I feel even better now. I always felt bad about the SEC’s tactics, and I feel even worse about them now,” added Alderoty.
Ripple chief executive officer Brad Garlinghouse also chimed into Alderoty’s Twitter statement thread, saying:
“The SEC wants you to think that it cares about disclosure, transparency and clarity. Don’t believe them. When the truth eventually comes out, the shamefulness of their behavior here will shock you.”
Documents Widely Believed to Clinch Legal Victory for Ripple
The documents in contention pertain to a 2018 speech by former SEC division director William Hinman regarding Ether’s (ETH) status. It has been reported that the SEC fought tooth and nail to ensure that the documents remain in obscurity. However, in late September, US District Court Judge Analisa Torres overruled the regulatory agency’s second attempt to withhold the Hinman documents.
A partner at Hogan & Hogan, Jeremy Hogan, weighed in on the ongoing legal dispute between Ripple and the SEC. In a statement thread, the lawyer examined the given strengths of each party’s position based on circumstantial evidence. However, Hogan also added that this evidence, in the form of briefs, will be available to the public on October 24th.
As Ripple seems to be closing in on securing victory against the SEC, the price of its native XRP token currently remains unaffected. In fact, over the last 24 hours, XRP plunged 3.2% in value and is now changing hands at $0.446.
In the broader scheme of things, Ripple’s momentum has also considerably intensified in the last month. However, XRP is still trading down 87% from its $3.40 record high price in January 2018.
Genesis of Ripple-SEC Legal Tussle
The SEC originally filed a suit against Ripple, its current CEO Brad Garlinghouse, and previous CEO Chris Larsen back in December 2020. According to the Commission, Ripple’s XRP token should have been registered as a security. The SEC also stated that Ripple executives held an initial public offering (IPO) of XRP, which was unregistered at the time. According to the agency, the fintech firm raised funds by selling these XRP tokens to numerous investors via an unregistered security offering.