"Ripple's latest XRP unblocking sparks debate over potential settlement of SEC lawsuit"

Recently, Ripple unlocked 500 million XRP from an escrow account, and members of the cryptocurrency community speculated that the company might be close to resolving its legal dispute with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

To put readers in context, Ripple recently unlocked a staggering amount of XRP from its escrow account. Data from cryptocurrency tracking service Whale Alert shows that the company unlocked 500 million XRP in two different transactions yesterday.

The first transaction released 200 million XRP worth $123 million, while the second transaction included 200 million XRP worth $184 million.

The recent transaction came as a surprise to the community as the crypto payments company typically unlocks XRP in its escrow account on the first of every month.

Ripple Lawsuit Might Be Soon Settled?

As such, the transactions have sparked reactions in the cryptocurrency community as enthusiasts try to understand the reasons behind them.

Much of the speculation revolves around the ongoing legal battle between the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Ripple.

Some XRP enthusiasts have speculated that Ripple may have unlocked the coins to pay its legal fees for the ongoing SEC lawsuit. However, others saw the surprise unlock as a sign that the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple was about to be resolved. XRP enthusiasts who hold this view believe that Ripple intends to sell these coins to resolve the dispute with regulators.

Interestingly, a user named @TheJNelsonWay shared a document showing that the SEC and Ripple are about to end this long-standing legal war through a settlement.

According to the filing, the SEC and Ripple’s legal counsel plan to hold settlement discussions ahead of a scheduled pretrial conference on April 16, 2024.

Another user pointed out that the transaction looked suspicious because it occurred one day after the SEC held a closed session.

As reported earlier, the SEC held a closed meeting on April 11. The meeting was attended by senior SEC officials, including commissioners and their secretaries. The agenda of the meeting was unclear at the time, and XRP enthusiasts speculated that the SEC may have discussed a settlement with Ripple.

Ripple completes April quota

Meanwhile, the 500 million XRP unlocked is part of the 1 billion coins scheduled to be released this month. Remember that Ripple only unlocked 500 million XRP on April 1st.

Although the system was scheduled to release 1 billion XRP on April 1, only 500 million were triggered that day. Therefore, the remaining 500 million XRP coins were finally released yesterday, bringing the total amount of XRP unlocked in April to 1 billion.

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