XRP cryptocurrency jumps as investors hope Ripple will win legal battle with the SEC
A visual representation of the digital cryptocurrency, XRP.
S3studio | Getty Images
The XRP cryptocurrency soared on Wednesday as investors grew hopeful that Ripple, a company closely associated with the token, would win its prolonged legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The token was worth around 45 cents at about 8 a.m. ET, according to data from CoinGecko, up over 11% in the last 24 hours. It was earlier trading up as much as 20%.
Traders pointed to a supplemental notice submitted by Ripple on Monday which pointed to a ruling in a separate case concerning Binance.US’ rescue plan for collapsed crypto lender Voyager Digital. Under the plan, Binance’s U.S. unit was to buy all of Voyager’s assets, including its native VGX token, in a $1.3 billion deal.
The SEC rejected the plan, arguing VGX was akin to a security and calling Binance an unregistered securities exchange, according to the notice from Ripple.
However, the judge rejected the SEC’s objections and approved the bankruptcy plan citing what he called the “vagueness” of the regulator’s arguments and stating the SEC had not “offered any guidance at all as to just what it was that the Debtors allegedly were supposed to prove” to demonstrate VGX was not a security, according to the Ripple letter.
The SEC wasn’t immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.
The SEC accuses Ripple, CEO Brad Garlinghouse and co-founder Chris Larsen of breaching U.S. securities laws by selling XRP without first registering it with the regulator. Ripple contests the SEC’s allegations, maintaining the view that XRP should be considered a digital currency rather than a security.
Monica Long, president of Ripple, told CNBC Wednesday morning that she was “very hopeful” about achieving a positive resolution to the SEC battle, adding she thinks it will reach a conclusion sometime this year.
Long said she thinks it’s “very unlikely” the judge will rule in favor of the SEC “considering by our view both the facts and the law are on our side.”
If XRP were to be deemed a security, it could have huge ramifications for the digital currency industry.
Floods of tokens may end up falling into the same category, making them regulated financial instruments that would need SEC supervision and frequent transparency disclosures.
Market sentiment improving
Ripple and the SEC have now both submitted their final round of briefs seeking a summary judgment to the case. The case now rests with Judge Analisa Torres of the Southern District of New York, who is expected to issue a verdict soon.
It is not clear when she will make her decision. However, some crypto investors believe an outcome will arrive in the coming days.
XRP “is being bolstered by a potential positive outcome in the SEC case,” Vijay Ayyar, vice president of international at crpyto exchange Luno, told CNBC via email Wednesday.
The token, which is the sixth-largest globally by market value, is also being boosted by the broader crypto market sentiment, Ayyar said.
Bitcoin is up 70% since the start of the year and is currently trading above $28,000 for the first time in nine months. Ether, the second-biggest token, has risen 50% year-to-date.
“Overall, crypto markets have rallied in the past week or so, given the anticipation of a pause or slow down in interest rates and the slowdown in inflation,” according to Ayyar.
Regulation by enforcement?
Ripple’s Long said she believed the SEC was regulating through enforcement rather than establishing clear regulations for the sector. Europe is more advanced in its treatment of crypto, she argued, highlighting the bloc’s Markets in Crypto Assets regulation as an example.
“We’re seeing action through enforcement vs. setting clear rules and regulation which is what all of us in the industry desire,” Long said.
“Europe is really emerging as a leader in setting really clear regulations and rules that allow crypto companies and also traditional finance to embrace crypto.”
For its part, the SEC has said it wants all crypto companies and projects to bring their operations into compliance with federal securities laws.
In an interview with CNBC in February after a crackdown on the crypto exchange Kraken, SEC Chair Gary Gensler said, “There’s a handful of tokens that have actually registered. The intermediaries, the storefronts if you wish, the casinos that people are investing in and investing at need to properly comply and disentangle these bundled products.”
“If this field has any chance of survival and success, it’s time-tested rules and laws to protect the investing public.”
In recent weeks, the regulator has taken aim at numerous crypto firms alleging they are engaged in illegal securities offerings.
Stablecoin issuer Paxos said the SEC served it with a notice threatening legal action over claims that BUSD, the native stablecoin of crypto exchange Binance, was a security that should have been registered with the regulator.
The regulator also hit crypto lender Genesis and exchange Gemini with charges alleging a high-yield investment product offered by the two companies should have been treated as a security.
WATCH: Bitcoin at $10,000 — or $250,000? Investors are sharply divided on 2023
The Hers app arranged on a smartphone in New York, US, on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025.
Gabby Jones | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Shares of Hims & Hers Health fell 9% in extended trading on Monday after the telehealth company reported second-quarter results that missed Wall Street’s expectations for revenue.
Here’s how the company did based on average analysts’ estimates compiled by LSEG:
- Earnings per share: 17 cents adjusted vs. 15 cents
- Revenue: $544.8 million vs. $552 million
Revenue at Hims & Hers increased 73% in the second quarter from $315.6 million during the same period last year, according to a release. Hims & Hers reported a net income of $42.5 million, or 17 cents per share, compared to $13.3 million, or 6 cents per share, during the same period a year earlier.
For its third quarter, Hims & Hers said it expected to report revenue between $570 million to $590 million, while analysts were expecting $583 million. The company said its adjusted EBITDA for the quarter will be between the range of $60 million to $70 million. Analysts polled by StreetAccount were expecting $77.1 million.
Hims & Hers has faced controversy in recent months over its continued sale of compounded GLP-1s, which are cheaper, unapproved versions of the blockbuster diabetes and weight loss drugs. Compounded drugs can be mass produced when brand-name treatments are in shortage, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced in February that ongoing supply issues had been resolved.
Some telehealth companies, including Hims & Hers, have continued to offer the compounded medications. It’s legal for patients to access personalized doses of the knockoffs in unique cases, like if they are allergic to an ingredient in a branded product, for instance. Hims & Hers has said consumers may still be able to access personalized doses through its site if clinically applicable.
In June, Hims & Hers shares tumbled more than 30% after a short-lived collaboration with Novo Nordisk fell apart. The drugmaker said Hims & Hers “failed to adhere to the law which prohibits mass sales of compounded drugs” under the “false guise” of personalization.
Hims & Hers reported adjusted EBITDA of $82 million for its second quarter, up from $39.3 million last year and above the $73 million expected by StreetAccount.
Hims & Hers will host its quarterly call with investors at 5 p.m. ET.
YTD chart of Hims & Hers Health.
–CNBC’s Annika Kim Constantino contributed to this report
Palantir topped Wall Street’s estimates Monday, surpassing $1 billion in quarterly revenue for the first time, and hiking its full-year guidance.
Shares rallied more than 5%.
Here’s how the company did versus LSEG estimates:
- Earnings per share: 16 cents adj. vs. 14 cents expected
- Revenue: $1.00 billion vs. $940 million expected
The artificial intelligence software provider’s revenues grew 48% during the period. Analysts hadn’t expected the $1 billion revenue benchmark from the Denver-based company until the fourth quarter of this year.
“The growth rate of our business has accelerated radically, after years of investment on our part and derision by some,” wrote CEO Alex Karp in a letter to shareholders. “The skeptics are admittedly fewer now, having been defanged and bent into a kind of submission.”
The software analytics company also boosted its full-year outlook guidance. For the full year, Palantir now expects revenues to range between $4.142 billion and $4.150 billion, up from prior guidance of $3.89 billion to $3.90 billion.
For the third quarter, Palantir forecast revenues between $1.083 billion and $1.087 billion, beating an analyst estimate of $983 million. Palantir also lifted its operating income and full-year free cash flow guidance.
Palantir’s U.S. revenues jumped 68% from a year ago to $733 million, while U.S. commercial revenues nearly doubled from a year ago to $306 million.
The software analytics company has seen a boost from President Donald Trump‘s government efficiency campaign, which included layoffs and contract cuts. Palantir’s U.S. government revenues jumped 53% from the year-ago period to $426 million.
“It has been a steep and upward climb — an ascent that is a reflection of the remarkable confluence of the arrival of language models, the chips necessary to power them, and our software infrastructure,” Karp wrote in a letter to shareholders.
During the quarter, Palantir said it closed 66 deals of at least $5 million and 42 deals totaling at least $10 million. Total value of its contracts grew 140% from last year to $2.27 billion.
Net income rose 144% to about $326.7 million, or 13 cents a share, from about $134.1 million, or 6 cents per share a year ago.
Palantir shares have more than doubled this year as investors bet on the company’s AI tools and contract agreements with governments.
Its market value has accelerated past $379 billion and into the list of top 20 most valuable U.S companies, surpassing Salesforce, IBM and Cisco to join the top 10 U.S. tech companies by market cap. Shares hit a new high Monday.
At its size, buying the stock requires investors to pay hefty multiples.
Shares currently trade 276 times forward earnings, according to FactSet. Tesla is the only other top 20 with a triple-digit ratio at 177.
Palantir one-day stock chart.
Firefly Aerospace CEO Jason Kim sits for an interview at the Firefly Aerospace mission operations center in Leander, Texas, on July 9, 2025.
Sergio Flores | Reuters
Firefly Aerospace has lifted the share price range for its upcoming initial public offering in a move that would value the space technology company at more than $6 billion.
The lunar lander and rocket maker said in a filing Monday that it expects to price shares in its upcoming IPO between $41 and $43 apiece.
Firefly’s new target range would raise nearly $697 million at the top end of the range. That’s up from the previously expected $35 to $39 price per share that Firefly announced in a filing last week, which targeted a $5.5 billion valuation.
Firefly announced plans to go public last month as interest in space technology gains steam, and billionaire-led companies such as Elon Musk‘s SpaceX rake in more funding.
The industry has also begun testing the public markets after a long hiatus in IPO deal activity, with space tech firm Voyager debuting in June.
Firefly makes rockets, space tugs and lunar landers, and is widely known for its satellite launching rockets known as Alpha.
The company has partnered with major defense players such as Lockheed Martin, L3Harris and NASA, and received a $50 million investment from defense contractor Northrop Grumman.
Firefly’s revenues jumped from $8.3 million a year ago to $55.9 million at the end of March, the company said. Its net loss grew to $60.1 million, from $52.8 million a year ago.
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