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- Ripple’s small wins in NFTs and ODL could spell a gargantuan surge for XRP with XRP’s recovery of over 50 percent being among the largest across major cryptocurrencies.
- SEC increasingly showing frailness in its suit against Ripple.
Despite the ongoing legal battle with the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), Ripple has been bagging small wins in hindsight which could be monumental for XRP’s rise.
In its latest “Q3 XRP Markets Report”, the San Francisco-based blockchain firm disclosed that the amount of XRP held across various Ripple wallets had dropped below 50 billion or 50 percent of the outstanding supply in the past quarter. According to the report, this milestone was important in that it debunks criticism that the Ripple network is centralized.
Below 50% – a huge milestone! For 10 years, Ripple has focused on using XRP & the XRPL within our products for its speed, security and scalability for movement of value. As more customers use XRP in their payments flows, it’s clear there is real utility here. https://t.co/jKZwye17uZ
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) October 27, 2022
Ripple has also been making inroads in the NFT space since Ripple Labs introduced XRP Ledger Version 1.9. which brought NFT functionality to the devnet with XLS-20 in April. In September, Ripple announced a $250 million creator fund to help creators bring their NFT projects to market on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). Already, a list of the crème de la crème names in the NFT world like fashion powerhouse Balmain, metaverse platform 9LEVEL9, fan-focused Japanese NFT marketplace Anifie and NFT sports platform among others are building on XRPL.
Ripple’s On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) service has also experienced hockey-like growth in Q3 despite the bleak cryptocurrency market situation. The firm’s expansion into new markets such as Brazil and its strategic partnerships with players such as Travelex Bank, FOMO Pay, and iRemit have boosted demand for its affordable cross-border payment services. Apart from enabling bulk payments and real-time settlements, ODL eliminates the need for pre-funded destination accounts, while delivering near-instant settlement and providing 24/7/365 access to liquidity.
Hinman speech to end Ripple case?
That said, despite the foregoing milestones, Ripple’s legal tussle with the SEC remains to impede the network’s overall growth, and more so its native token XRP. In the past few weeks, however, various developments in the case have increasingly pointed towards a win by Ripple. Last month, Ripple and the SEC filed their respective summary judgment motions under seal. Last week, Ripple scored a gargantuan win after the SEC released the long-sought “Hinman Speech” documents which according to Ripple’s lawyer was “well worth the fight”.
While the case is likely to run through to the end of the year, the SEC is increasingly showing signs of defeat by filing documents that are seen as trying to slow the case. Moreover, by acting outside their legislative authority and attempting to “remake the law in the hopes that it can impermissibly expand their jurisdiction far beyond the authority granted to them by Congress” most crypto adherents do not see the regulator’s case succeeding.
Meanwhile, XRP continues to hold steady ahead of the court’s determination, largely moving in the general direction of the market. In the past month, however, the cryptocurrency has managed to recover by over 50 percent after tapping a yearly low of $0.28 in June. After a short fall on Thursday, XRP now changes hands at around $0.46 down 1.94 percent in the past 24 hours based on our data.
