SEC Commissioner Hester Pierce says that Ripple may not be a security after all….but it may have been sold as one.
The ongoing legal case between Ripple and the SEC rumbles on and now Hester Pierce’s latest comment has given Ripple a possible out. The SEC commissioner, also known in the circle as “Crypto Mom” said that XRP might not be security but could have been issued as one.
Brad Garlinghouse and Chris Larsen, along with Ripple Labs are being investigated by the SEC for violating the federal securities laws, specifically the charge being that the company issued unregistered securities.
In a recent interview, Pierce clarified that the SEC is going after Ripple for wrongfully issuing tokens, but not for misrepresenting it as a security.
When we think about a crypto-asset as being a security, what we’re doing is we’re saying it’s being sold as part of an investment contract, which means that promises are being made around the sale of this asset. It doesn’t mean that the asset itself necessarily has to be a security. It means that it was being sold as security.
Hester Pierce, SEC Commissioner
Ripple insist they never sold XRP as part of an investment contract, with Garlinghouse has arguing XRP holders have no stake in the company, and so the case holds no water. He has also said he believes the SEC case is an attack on the crypto-community by the Federal government.
