A rumor claiming a potential settlement between Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) scheduled for a closed meeting on July 18 has been debunked by former SEC regional director and pro-XRP lawyer, Marc Fagel. According to Fagel, the likelihood of a settlement being discussed in this particular meeting is highly improbable, despite the community’s hopeful speculations.

Ripple-SEC Settlement Is Highly Unlikely

The rumor was initially fueled by Brett Hill, an ambassador for the cryptocurrency exchange Bitrue, who suggested via the social media platform X that the SEC’s private meeting might finalize the long-standing legal battle between Ripple and the regulator. Hill cited “reliable sources” and pointed to a screenshot of the SEC’s official meeting announcement, which, however, did not explicitly mention the Ripple case. Reacting to the speculation, Marc Fagel humorously on X, saying, “I mean, they’ve had about 150 of these nearly-weekly meetings since the case was filed, and Crypto Twitter was convinced a settlement was being discussed at every one of those meetings, but this is DEFINITELY the one! [Narrator: It’s not the one.]” According to the SEC’s announcement, the meeting’s agenda will cover topics such as the institution and settlement of injunctive actions, administrative proceedings, resolution of litigation claims, and other matters related to enforcement proceedings. Although the agenda does include topics that could theoretically encompass a settlement with Ripple, there is no direct evidence to suggest that this is planned for discussion. In contrast, another pro-XRP lawyer, Fred Rispoli, has a potential future date, July 31, for a possible resolution, albeit noting that a “pre-judgment settlement is unlikely.” Rispoli’s prediction includes a possible penalty not exceeding $25 million for Ripple, without any disgorgement.

The SEC has been engaged in a legal tussle with Ripple since December 2020. Following the summary one year and 4 days ago, both parties are currently waiting for a remedy and penalty ruling by Judge Analisa Torres.

The SEC is pursuing a penalty of $102.6 million against Ripple, markedly lower than the almost $2 billion initially demanded. Ripple has suggested capping the penalty at $10 million, citing the Terraform Labs case as a precedent. Nonetheless, the SEC has dismissed this proposal in its reply brief, stating that such a minimal amount would not align with the objectives of civil penalty statutes.

XRP Price Gains Momentum

Over the past 12 days, the price of XRP has surged from $0.38 to over $0.61, marking a 61% increase. Although Bitcoin spearheaded the broader recovery in the cryptocurrency market, XRP has emerged as one of the top performers during this period. While no specific news can be directly linked to this price movement, the favorable technical chart setup for XRP, along with potential influence from settlement rumors, have likely contributed to the significant uptick. At press time, XRP traded at $0.61551.