The case is SEC v. Ripple Labs Inc, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 20-CV-10832. (Reporting by Jody Godoy in New York)
(Republished to correct a typo in the 6th paragraph)
March 3 (Reuters) - Ripple Labs Inc said in court papers
Friday that a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision supports one of
its key defenses in the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission's case over the cryptocurrency XRP.
The San Francisco-based blockchain payments company said the
ruling on Tuesday limiting the government's ability to levy
penalties on U.S. taxpayers who fail to report foreign bank
accounts emphasized that federal laws must give "fair warning"
of what they prohibit.
Ripple asked U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres to consider
the decision when she rules in the SEC's case accusing the
company and its current and former chief executives of
conducting a $1.3 billion unregistered securities offering by
selling XRP, which Ripple's founders created in 2012.
Ripple and the executives have denied the allegations, and
the company has argued that XRP has traded and been used as a
digital currency.
The SEC has asked Torres to decide that Ripple had fair
notice that XRP was a security under U.S. law. Ripple and the
executives have said the question of whether or not the law was
vague should go to trial.
Torres may decide a trial is unnecessary to determine
whether XRP was a security, or narrow the issues that go before
a jury.
A ruling in the case could further define what digital
assets are considered securities in the U.S.
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