Chief Executive Officer Ripple Brad Garlinghouse stated that although the company held a large number of XRPs and was concerned about its future, it could not control the nature of the asset. In his speech at KU Business School, he explained why he believed that XRP had never been charged by the SEC.
Companies without control
This distinction lies at the heart of the proceedings brought by the SEC against Ripple in 2020 for the sale of unregistered securities. Garlinghouse strongly rejects this statement, arguing that XRP is completely different from traditional company shares. He said, "It's like having an Apple stock, not at any level."
No alert session.
Garlinghouse held four meetings with SEC between 2017 and 2019, during which no lawyer was brought. He states that he was merely interpreting Ripple ' s technology and that he was not warned that XRP might be considered a security.
The expensive struggle and change after 2020
Four years of legal struggle with the SEC cost Ripple about $150 million. Although Ripple eventually won the case, the then SEC leadership indicated that an appeal was planned. Garlinghouse mentioned that, following the new chairmanship of SEC, the environment had changed and was more constructive for the encryption industry. He linked the whole incident to a broader argument he had made over the years: Most participants in the encryption industry would prefer to have clear rules, rather than engage in subsequent fighting.