The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit against Ripple filed in December 2020 has deprived the XRP token of nearly three years of adoption in the United States, said pro-XRP lawyer John E Deaton in a recent post on X (formerly Twitter).
Deaton’s comments came amid Coinbase’s announcement that they have acquired a minority stake in USD Coin (USDC) issuer Circle and will be working to “unlock additional utilities and grow the USDC ecosystem.” The lawyer reflected on how Ripple and XRP were on a trajectory of great adoption in cross-border payment and if not for the SEC lawsuit, the likes of Coinbase might have shown similar interest in Ripple.
You could NEVER underestimate the damage the SEC’s lawsuit has caused – NOT ONLY AGAINST RIPPLE – BUT #XRP. THREE YEARS OF ADOPTION – that’s what it’s caused.
The pro-XRP lawyer reminded the community that Coinbase was one of the major promoters of XRP before the lawsuit forced the crypto exchange to delist the token.
Deaton noted that Coinbase did its due diligence and even reached out to the SEC to check the regulatory status of XRP before listing it. Coinbase in its meeting in January 2019, explained to the SEC that it evaluated XRP based on its stringent regulatory framework for digital assets, the same framework a senior staff at the SEC had publicly complimented Coinbase on.
The SEC at the time didn’t share any objection to the Coinbase listing proposal followed by the crypto exchange listing the XRP token in Feb 2019. Similarly, MoneyGram, a payment processor giant and a key Ripple remittance partner also filed a form with the SEC, disclosing how they plan to use XRP. MoneyGram faced no objection from the SEC either.
Deaton said that clearly, the lawyers at “MoneyGram also determined, just like Coinbase’s lawyers, and just like the SEC enforcement lawyers in June 2018, that XRP was NOT a security.” However, despite all the necessary measures taken by Ripple partners, SEC filed a lawsuit against Ripple in Dec 2020.
We know the rest. It is so clear the lawsuit was used as a weapon. I said it only 9 days after the Ripple lawsuit in a federal pleading, when I filed the Writ of Mandamus against the SEC, and all the evidence uncovered during the last 3 years proves it to be true.
The pro-XRP lawyer claimed that Ripple’s lawsuit was used as a weapon. and said “all the evidence uncovered during the last 3 years proves it to be true.” He concluded that despite Ripple’s continued and impressive success outside the U.S., the lawsuit definitely hurt XRP’s adoption. On July 13, a New York District Court judge Analisa Torres ruled partially in favor of Ripple Labs, ruling that XRP sales on digital asset exchanges is not a security.
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After days of furore directed at Rishi Sunak for the election betting scandal, now a Labour candidate is under investigation by the Gambling Commission for his own betting activity – and is immediately suspended.
Is this an equaliser in one of the grubbiest electoral sagas of recent elections? Quite possibly not.
There is no doubting the utter dismay in Labour HQ at the revelation that they too have a candidate caught up in the betting scandal.
However, if this scenario is as presented, it is hard to see an allegation being mounted that he had insider intelligence on the race – unless it can be proved he was deliberately setting out to lose.
An under-pressure Gambling Commission will investigate every candidate’s name on the spreadsheet from gambling companies of those who placed bets – but it is unclear from available facts where this will go.
The Tory betting saga, however, is more complicated and now on its 13th day.
It was almost two weeks ago that Craig Williams – Rishi Sunak’s closest parliamentary aide and former Montgomeryshire MP – admitted he had placed a bet on the election date – a date he might have known before the public at large.
He denies he committed any offence, and remains under investigation.
Laura Saunders, standing for the Tories just south in Bristol North West, has also been suspended for putting a bet on the date when her partner worked in Conservative headquarters on the election.
For most of that time, Mr Sunak has been insisting he could not suspend either candidate because of the ongoing probe by the Gambling Commission.
Ministers, as well as opponents, weighed in.
And on Tuesday he reversed that decision under that pressure.
This means there are questions about the prime minister’s own judgement and unwillingness to act on top of questions about the behaviour of those closest to him.
Image: Craig Williams and Laura Saunders have both been suspended from the Tories. Pics: PA/Laura Saunders for Bristol North West
This story has had massive cut through with the public, topping the charts for any news story in the UK – according to YouGov’s AI news tracker – for the last four days.
There is dismay from the cabinet downwards.
Labour’s own problems have undermined their own ability to go on the attack. But it is not clear that voters will see the two issues on the same scale.
The full list of the candidates running for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich is:
Charlie Caiger, independent; Tony Gould, Reform UK; Mike Hallatt, independent; Brett Alistair Mickelburgh, Lib Dems; Dan Pratt, Greens; Patrick Spencer, Conservatives.
The full list of candidates for Bristol North West is:
Caroline Gooch, Lib Dems; Darren Jones, Labour; Scarlett O’Connor, Reform UK; Mary Page, Green Party; Ben Smith, SDP.
The full list of candidates for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr is:
Jeremy Brignell-Thorp, Green Party; Oliver Lewis, Reform UK; Glyn Preston, Lib Dems; Elwyn Vaughan, Plaid Cymru; Steve Witherden, Labour.
Four men have been arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass in the grounds of the prime minister’s home, police have confirmed.
The incident took place at Rishi Sunak’s constituency address in Kirby Sigston, North Yorkshire, while he was attending events in London to mark the Japanese state visit.
A police statement said officers were “with the four men within one minute of them entering the grounds”.
The arrests are connected to a protest by campaigners from Youth Demand. It describes itself as a group of young people who want “the Tories and the Labour Party commit to a two-way arms embargo on Israel, and to stop all new oil and gas licences”.
A spokesperson for the group said three of those arrested were taking part in the demonstration, while the fourth person was an independent photographer.
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A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “They were detained at around 12.40pm before being escorted off the property and arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass.
“The men, aged 52 from London, 43 from Bolton, 21 from Manchester, and 20 from Chichester, remain in police custody for questioning and enquiries are ongoing.”
It comes after a separate incident last summer, when protesters scaled the roof of Mr Sunak’s home.
They held up banners which said “NO NEW OIL” and draped the building in fabric. It happened while the prime minister and his family were away on holiday in California.
Amy Rugg-Easey, 33, Alexandra Wilson, 32, Michael Grant, 64, and Mathieu Soete, 38, have pleaded not guilty to criminal damage, with a two-day trial set to take place in July.