XRP price poised to rally amid Ripple Payments expansion

SEC and CFTC joint statement on digital assets spot trading

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) released a joint statement on Tuesday on the trading of certain spot crypto asset products.

The regulators clarified that exchanges registered under the SEC and the CFTC will not be prohibited from listing and trading specified spot commodity products. Staff from both agencies will collaborate to ensure that market participants in the US have various options to meet their trading needs.

“Market participants should have the freedom to choose where they trade spot crypto assets. The SEC is committed to working with the CFTC to ensure that our regulatory frameworks support innovation and competition in these rapidly evolving markets,” the SEC Chairman, Paul Atkins, said in the statement.

The SEC and the CFTC have, since President Donald Trump took office in January, shifted their policy from that of the previous administration, sending a message that the US is ready to support innovation in the industry.

“Today’s joint agency statement is the latest demonstration of our mutual objective of supporting growth and development in these markets, but it will not be the last, CFTC Acting Chairman Caroline D. Pham added.

The joint statement falls under the SEC’s Project Crypto and the CFTC’s Crypto Sprint and builds on the findings of President Trump’s Working Group on Digital Assets. It also means that select digital assets could be listed for spot trading on US-registered exchanges, such as NASDAQ and the CME Group, once rule changes are ratified.

Ripple, Thunes collaborate on cross-border payments

Ripple and Thunes, a money transfer platform, have partnered to add support for blockchain-powered payment solutions. The collaboration will enable Ripple’s enterprises to move funds into more currencies and different global regions.

Thunes President and COO Chloe Mayenobe said that the partnership will enable “digital asset companies to deliver seamless, compliant, and accessible cross-border payments at scale.”

Thunes currently supports real-time payments in local currencies on its Direct Global Network. The partnership with Ripple will enhance efficiency and expand Thunes’ global reach. Ripple is also poised to benefit from the enhancement of its SmartX Treasury System.

Ripple’s Asian-Pacific Managing Director, Fiona Murray, said that “this partnership not only facilitates seamless, low-cost transactions but also supports the growing demand for innovative, blockchain-powered financial solutions globally.”

Ripple Payments enables users, including individuals and financial institutions, to send cross-border payments in real-time. The platform has 64 active licences across 90 markets, which support over 55 global currencies.

Technical outlook: XRP offers bullish signals

XRP price upholds a bullish outlook, positioned above the 50-period Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at $2.86. A buy signal from the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator reinforces the bullish grip, after maintaining a buy signal since Monday.

XRP bulls are eyeing the $3.00 short-term breakout target to reinforce the bullish outlook. The steady rise of the Relative Strength Index (RSI) to 57 from near oversold conditions indicates an increase in buying pressure.

XRP/USDT 4-hour chart

In the event of early profit-taming by investors who bought the recent dip to $2.70, a trend reversal below the 50-period support at $2.85 could trim weekly gains. Key support targets include $2.70, which was tested on Monday and the round-figure demand area at $2.50.

SEC vs Ripple lawsuit FAQs

Is XRP a security?

It depends on the transaction, according to a court ruling released on July 14, 2023: For institutional investors or over-the-counter sales, XRP is a security. For retail investors who bought the token via programmatic sales on exchanges, on-demand liquidity services and other platforms, XRP is not a security.

How does the ruling affect Ripple in its legal battle against the SEC?

The United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Ripple and its executives of raising more than $1.3 billion through an unregistered asset offering of the XRP token. While the judge ruled that programmatic sales aren’t considered securities, sales of XRP tokens to institutional investors are indeed investment contracts. In this last case, Ripple did breach the US securities law and had to pay a $125 million civil fine.

What are the implications of the ruling for the overall crypto industry?

The ruling offers a partial win for both Ripple and the SEC, depending on what one looks at. Ripple gets a big win over the fact that programmatic sales aren’t considered securities, and this could bode well for the broader crypto sector as most of the assets eyed by the SEC’s crackdown are handled by decentralized entities that sold their tokens mostly to retail investors via exchange platforms, experts say. Still, the ruling doesn’t help much to answer the key question of what makes a digital asset a security, so it isn’t clear yet if this lawsuit will set precedent for other open cases that affect dozens of digital assets. Topics such as which is the right degree of decentralization to avoid the “security” label or where to draw the line between institutional and programmatic sales persist.

Is the SEC stance toward crypto assets likely to change after the ruling?

The SEC has stepped up its enforcement actions toward the blockchain and digital assets industry, filing charges against platforms such as Coinbase or Binance for allegedly violating the US Securities law. The SEC claims that the majority of crypto assets are securities and thus subject to strict regulation. While defendants can use parts of Ripple’s ruling in their favor, the SEC can also find reasons in it to keep its current strategy of regulation by enforcement.