The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a Motion for Remedies and Entry of Final Judgment in the long running legal battle against Ripple Labs. The commission is urging the Court to grant permanent injunctions, disgorgement and prejudgment interest as outlined in the Proposed Final Judgment. However, the SEC had also talked about the Civil penalties in the case.
SEC looking to seal the deal
According to the documents filed in the court, the commission asserts that the motion is backed by Memorandum of Law, Declarations of Peter B. Moores and Andrea Fox, while it includes other exhibits too.
It is important to note that the SEC requests a final judgment against Ripple Labs. The commission is seeking permanent injunctions against future violations of the Securities Act of 1963, this particularly involves Section 5. However, it is around Ripple allegedly conducting unregistered offerings of XRP in Institutional Sales. It mentioned that these orders are crucial to prevent the defendants from getting into unlawful deeds ahead.
Here comes the second point where the Commission is asking for a sort of remedy of $876,308,712. However, it added a prejudgment interest amounting to $198,150,940 to it. These sums represent the profits gained by Ripple through its violations of securities laws.
Thirdly, the SEC is proposing the imposition of a civil penalty totaling $876,308,712. This penalty will serve as a required measure. It is expected to deter Ripple and others from doing similar violations in the future.
What does the motion say?
The motion highlights Ripple’s extensive $1 billion course of violations of securities laws, primarily through its unregistered offer and sale of XRP to institutional buyers and other counterparties. These violations warrant significant penalties and disgorgement of profits to ensure cessation of illegal conduct and deterrence.
Furthermore, the SEC underscores Ripple’s failure to accept responsibility for its violations, as evidenced by its mischaracterization of the court ruling as a “total victory” and its lack of transparency regarding its business practices. Despite receiving legal advice against selling XRP for cash and promoting it as an investment, Ripple chose to ignore this advice, indicating an intent to evade the law.
The SEC argues that only sanctions and the return of ill-gotten gains will prompt Ripple to correct its conduct and comply with securities laws. The requested relief aims to deter future violations, deprive Ripple of its unlawful gains, and address the harm caused to the markets.
