The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Ripple Labs failed to obtain a $50 million settlement from a federal judge because he disapproved of their attempt to bypass an existing court injunction.
The court denied the request because the parties failed to prove that exceptional circumstances existed to lift the permanent injunction against Ripple regarding its XRP token sales that violated securities laws.
The parties asked Judge Analisa Torres to vacate the injunction and reduce the $125 million fine to $50 million through their March agreement. The court retains its authority to enforce final judgments including those based on congressional laws according to Torres.
The court needs to maintain its authority despite the SEC’s changing approach to crypto enforcement according to Torres. Both Ripple and the SEC maintain their ability to withdraw from the decision or file an appeal.
The cryptocurrency XRP holds the fourth position in market value rankings behind Bitcoin, Ethereum and Tether. The SEC claimed that institutional investors bought $728 million worth of XRP through unregistered securities transactions although public exchange sales did not meet the securities definition.
The company’s legal chief continues to assess their future actions after the court decision.
