Ripple, the San Francisco-based fintech firm, decided to pause its plans to go public in the United States. Ripple CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 16 that the company temporarily halted any initial public offering (IPO) plans.
Garlinghouse explained that the decision is due to the “hostile” conditions they face with the U.S. regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Currently, Ripple is immersed in a three-year legal battle with the SEC, which sued the company in 2020 for selling unregistered securities.
The possibility of a Ripple IPO had already been considered in 2022, but ongoing litigation with the SEC has hindered these plans. Garlinghouse pointed out that attempting to go public in the United States under the supervision of a hostile regulator would not be pleasant.
Ripple Seeks to Avoid Conflicts Until the Regulatory Landscape Calms Down and Changes
The CEO mentioned the case of Coinbase, another major cryptocurrency company that obtained SEC approval for its IPO. However, it now faces lawsuits from the same entity for activities outlined in its S-1 document, an initial registration form required by the SEC for publicly traded companies.
Despite the pause in IPO plans, Garlinghouse emphasized that the option remains “open” and will be reevaluated in the future, especially if there are changes in regulation or in the composition of SEC regulators.
Garlinghouse also expressed dissatisfaction with Gary Gensler, the SEC chairman, describing him as a “political liability” and questioning his actions, which, according to him, are not aligned with the interests of the public or the long-term growth of the economy.
Regarding Ripple’s native token, XRP, it experienced lackluster performance during the recent cryptocurrency market rally. Currently trading at $0.574, XRP has remained stable in the last week with no significant changes in the day. Since the beginning of 2024, XRP has decreased by 8%, and compared to its all-time high of $3.40 in 2018, it has seen a decline of 83%.
Despite recurring rumors of potential XRP ETFs, these have not significantly influenced cryptocurrency traders, demonstrating the ongoing lack of momentum in XRP’s price amid regulatory and legal tensions.
