XRP Price Plummets as Ripple CEO Comments on Trump and SEC Battle

Digital token XRP took a dip in value on Monday, following a prominent television appearance by the CEO of the company that produces the cryptocurrency, which failed to reignite its recent surge. Currently, XRP is trading at $2.38, down 7.6% early Monday. Bitcoin also saw a decrease of 1.5%, now priced at $98,414.

XRP has experienced a significant increase of almost 400% since President-elect Donald Trump’s election. Many are optimistic that his administration will lessen the legal pressure on Ripple Labs, the company behind the cryptocurrency. Ripple Labs utilizes XRP to execute and process transactions on its digital payments platform. The Securities and Exchange Commission took legal action against the company in 2020 for the sale of an unregistered security. However, with the potential replacement of the agency’s current chair, Gary Gensler, by the crypto-friendly Paul Atkins, there could be a change in this case.

Despite recent advancement, the rally has slowed down in the past week, as traders may be capitalizing on the opportunity to secure profits. In an interview aired on Sunday, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse talked about Fairshake, a political action committee funded by cryptocurrency, which he helped establish last year. He expressed that this initiative was in response to what he referred to as a “war on crypto.”

Garlinghouse mentioned that if it hadn’t been for Gensler’s strict actions on digital assets, Fairshake might not have come into existence. During Gensler’s term, the agency pursued the case against Ripple and initiated legal proceedings against several other cryptocurrency companies.

Garlinghouse highlighted the dynamic relationship between former President Donald Trump and the crypto realm during the election campaign. Trump’s recent selection of Atkins, known for his skepticism towards regulating cryptocurrencies, to lead the SEC could potentially boost the value of XRP if the case against Ripple is resolved favorably. Despite the current halt in the rally, investors are keeping an eye on how these upcoming changes may influence the future of XRP.