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Brad Garlinghouse

XRP Scam Hit A U.S Sports Channel

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XRP scam has raised its ugly head once again, this time invading the official Twitter account of GOL TV, a U.S based TV sports channel.

Scams masquerading as XRP or Ripple-affiliated entities have become a nuisance on social media offering lucrative investment opportunities that are not backed by legitimate contracts or regulatory oversight.

This time too, the scammers exploited the image of Ripple founder Brad Garlinghouse to trick users into clicking dubious links by posting too good-to-be-true easy investment schemes.

Victims who take the bait find themselves with no recovered capital and no way to recoup their lost funds.

In order to do fraudulent activities that target XRP holders, these bad actors use a variety of strategies, including false accounts, public sentiment manipulation, misrepresenting credentials, multi-level marketing scams, complex phishing networks, and more advanced techniques.

Even if these techniques are not new, unaware victims can still be taken advantage of and suffer the consequences before it is too late.

One needs to exercise restraint and look for reliable sources before investing any money or sending money in order to avoid falling for any more of these scams in the future.

That being said, XRP is in the limelight as the legal tussle with the SEC is heading toward a decisive end, with many believing that its major backer Ripple would emerge as a victory.

Brad Garlinghouse, the chief executive of blockchain firm Ripple, recently expressed optimism about the token and revealed his expectations for the resolution of the legal dispute between Ripple and the SEC in Davos.

Shortly after his statement, multiple sizable transactions of XRP have been detected, including one that might be deemed “big”, data from the top cryptocurrency tracking service Whale Alert revealed.

Massive XRP Transactions After Ripple CEO’s Statement

The aforementioned cryptocurrency tracker discovered four significant transactions, one of which had a staggering 261,094,839 XRP, valued at $102 million.

In accordance with information released by community explorer Bithomp, this enormous lump was transferred between two anonymous wallets without any indication of addresses associated with any crypto exchange.

The rest of the transfers carried 34,700,000 XRP by Bitso crypto exchange.

It is a unicorn based in Mexico and one of Ripple’s major On-Demand Liquidity [ODL] partners, moved 34,700,000 XRP internally as it has often been doing recently, as it is actively spreading the usage of OLD in Latin America.

The other two lumps of the tokens were shoveled by whales from Bittrex exchange to Bitstamp and Bitso.

Ripple CEO Explains Why 2023 Will Be Crypto’s Breakthrough Year

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Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse is hoping that the year 2023 will witness a “breakthrough” in regulatory clarity for the cryptocurrency industry in the US.

Sharing his thoughts on the onset of the 118th Congress, Garlinghouse in the Tweet thread stated he’s “cautiously optimistic” as support for regulation is “bipartisan & bicameral.”

He cited the names of leading politicians who have publicly supported blockchain and recognized the need for clarity.

Garlinghouse believes although no bill is perfect or can satiate everyone, he, however, acknowledged the significance of earlier bills that have attempted to address the issues surrounding the digital asset industry.

According to the Ripple CEO, these proposals have provided more than a starting point for debate in this new Congress.

Next, he pointed out how the U.S. is languishing behind Singapore, the European Union, Brazil, and Japan when it comes to crypto legislation and regulations.

He asserted that the absence of a concerted effort to establish a regulatory framework both internationally and in the United States “continues to push business to countries [with] lower regulatory bars,” with “sometimes catastrophic results,” such as the collapse of FTX, which has its headquarters in the Bahamas.

Besides being known as a fintech powerhouse, Garlinghouse’s Ripple also manages the global payment network RippleNet and the XRP cryptocurrency.

Meanwhile, the crypto community is anticipating a positive verdict in the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC] v. Ripple lawsuit, which has entered its third year.

Ripple v. SEC. is one of the most closely watched cases in the cryptocurrency industry. In essence, the SEC claimed that Ripple raised more than $1.3 billion by selling unregistered securities in the form of XRP currency.

Ripple Community In Favor Of A Settlement

Since both parties have delivered their closing arguments, the community is presently anticipating the day of the verdict. A survey on possible case outcomes was conducted by pro-XRP lawyer John Deaton prior to the verdict.

In a poll taken on December 28 and receiving close to 18,000 responses, 59.2% of participants thought the dispute would be resolved amicably, while 40.8% preferred a jury verdict.

Deaton, however, voted in favor of the minority opinion, suggesting that the trial will continue.

Uncertainty exists regarding when the lawsuit will be resolved. If the Ripple v. SEC litigation does not achieve an out-of-court settlement by March 31, according to lawyer James K. Filan, who has been following the case, a ruling will be made.

Ripple CTO Sees Light At End Of Tunnel Despite Warren’s Crypto Warning

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David Schwartz, CTO of Ripple, reluctantly concurs with Senator Elizabeth Warren’s warning about cryptocurrency. In terms of regulating cryptocurrencies, he thinks the Massachusetts senator might actually be on to something.

Warren worries that if there is no adequate oversight, cryptocurrency might end up bringing down the economy in recent op-ed published by The Wall Street Journal.

The senator admits that cryptocurrencies may eventually lead to a more inclusive financial system, but she also emphasizes the fact that history is “littered” with a variety of dubious financial schemes that were promoted by “criminals and charlatans.”

The Justice Department should employ its “full range of resources,” according to Warren, because cryptocurrency executives who violate the law are no different from those who use other platforms.

The legislator continued by saying that the US Securities and Exchange Commission also needed to “suit up.” Warren also criticized cryptocurrency mining companies for putting a load on the electrical infrastructure and raising greenhouse gas emissions.

She has emphasized that cryptocurrency must adhere to the same regulations as traditional financial industries.

Schwarz from Ripple says that given Warren’s recognition of the significance of reforming cryptocurrency law, this is not “an bad position to work with.” This, he continues, is crucial for establishing proper crypto rules.

Ripple Looking To Consider Deals For FTX Assets

The demise of the reputable exchange FTX has continued to have a negative impact on the cryptocurrency economy. Many organisations have expressed interest in helping Sam Bankman-failing Fried’s company from the outset. Binance first considered throwing a life jacket but eventually changed his mind. At about the same time, Justin Sun of Tron asserted that he was developing a plan with FTX to “initiate a pathway ahead.”

However, as of late, the blockchain payment giant Ripple has expressed interest in purchasing some of the assets of the struggling cryptocurrency exchange FTX.

The Sunday Times reported that former FTX CEO Bankman-Fried called Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse two days before the company declared bankruptcy in an effort to gather investors to save it. The two then talked about if there were any FTX-owned companies that Ripple “would want to own.”

Garlinghouse further stated,

“Part of my conversation [with SBF] was if he needs liquidity, maybe there are businesses that he has bought or he has that we would want to own. Maybe there’s investments that we would want own. Would we have bought some of those from him? I definitely think that was on the table.”

Ripple CEO Angry Over SEC’s Disregard For Investors

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Ripple’s Chief Executive Officer Brad Garlinghouse expressed shock as the legal dispute has developed and believed that the SEC’s objective isn’t about “a faithful allegiance to the law”. It’s about power under the garb of interest protection, he alleged.

There is no regard for those companies and people that this approach has harmed. We all should be outraged. The SEC has clearly forgotten that the government works for the people.

Garlinghouse also brings light to the agency’s glaring disregard for the people and businesses that have been harmed by the agency’s strategy. The SEC charged Ripple and its top executives with selling unregistered securities in a 2020 lawsuit.

Last week, during DC Fintech Week, event, the CEO said he expects the court to rule on the lawsuit in the first half of 2023.

“I think we’ll have an answer in the first half of next year. Whether that’s the first quarter or second quarter, we shall see,” he said. 

SEC filed a formal lawsuit against Ripple in December 2020 for allegedly breaking securities laws. According to the regulator, between 2013 and 2020, the blockchain firm and two of its executives raised $1.3 billion by selling unregistered securities to foreign investors through the sale of XRP tokens.

Ripple and the entire crypto industry were taken aback by the SEC lawsuit because there had been no indication that the watchdog was keeping an eye on the business.

Ripple CEO- SEC’s Decision Will Only Benefit China

The SEC regulations, according to Ripple, were not broken because XRP is not a security. Garlinghouse asserted following the lawsuit that his business was specifically chosen for close examination.

The regulator “should not be able to cherry-pick what innovation looks like (especially when their decision directly benefits China),” Garlinghouse continued.

A motion to access internal records, including emails and drafts, pertaining to a 2018 speech by former SEC executive William Hinman was granted by Ripple last month.

Because the commissioner believed that Ether, like Bitcoin, is not a security, Hinman made comments about Ether’s legal status in the documents that the Commission wished to keep private.

The SEC lawsuit is an assault on the cryptocurrency industry, and the outcome will determine the future of the sector, the Ripple CEO emphasized once more.

Ripple CEO Caught Up In A Major CryptoLeaks Scandal

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Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse found itself in the latest pile of allegations levied by crypto whistleblower Crypto Leaks that he agreed to the proposal of becoming Kyle Roche’s angel investor in suing crypto competitors.

This, as per the documents, was meant to draw away regulators’ attention.

Denying the rumors Garlinghouse tweeted,

“Can’t comment on the validity of the slew of allegations in here, but I can unequivocally say that I have never met or spoken to (much less invested in) Kyle Roche.” 

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Crypto Twitter was rocked by allegations of a deep-rooted conspiracy from a Crypto Leaks report on Aug 26. As per the videos that the whistleblower uploaded on Friday, Emin Gün Sirer and Kevin Sekniqi, the respective CEO and COO of Ava Labs had inked a “secret deal” with American law firm Roche Freedman to “target and ruin crypto organizations.”

According to CryptoLeaks, Roche Freedman and Kyle Roche have a “special” agreement to provide legal services to Ava Labs in exchange for AVAX tokens and a major stake in the firm.

They also allegedly planned to use “litigation as a tool” to stamp out rivals and mislead regulators like the Security Exchange Commission [SEC] and Commodity Futures Trading Commission [CFTC].

In one video Roche said that he would “makes sure that the SEC and CFTC have other magnets [Avalanche competitors] to go after”.

Ava Labs CEO Emin Gün Sirer fired back terming the accusations as “conspiracy theory gibberish” and stated that they would never engage in these “self-serving videos and inflammatory articles”

Binance’s Changpeng Zhao a.k.a CZ too chimed by describing the allegations as “wild,” and wondered if the videos were deep fakes. The tweet has since been deleted.

Another Trouble Heading for Ripple?

Interestingly BinanceUS was sued by Roche Freedman recently for the Terra blowup. But Crypto Leaks alleged that this was done under the directive of Ava Labs. 

On the other hand, Ripple’s Garlinghouse remains embroiled in the long-drawn legal battle with the SEC. In the latest hearing, the blockchain firm received a minor relief after the regulator didn’t object to Ripple’s pursuit of protection for non-parties appearing in the Daubert challenge motions.

However, the latest development might signal trouble for the firm.

XRP as a security is a no-go; Settlement with SEC out of the picture, Garlinghouse affirms

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The entire world witnessed the Ripple vs. SEC case where the financial watchdog proceeded to label XRP as a security, while Ripple tried to shun off these accusations. As this lawsuit persists, both the parties have time and again been asked if there were any chances of a settlement. The SEC as well as Ripple have outrightly suggested there were no possibilities of a settlement.

More recently, Ripple’s Brad Garlinghouse appeared in an interview with Fox Business’s Charles Gasparino and clarified that settlement wouldn’t be possible if the SEC continued to deem XRP as a security.

While 2021 started out as a great year for almost all the crypto assets in the market, XRP was the only one to suffer the wrath of the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC] of the United States. The regulator went on to categorize XRP as a security and accused Ripple of selling “unregistered securities.” This caused immense loss to the asset as it was ousted by prominent crypto exchanges.

Despite garnering the support of regulators from across the globe, Ripple failed to convince the SEC. This battle appears to go on for a long time. While Garlinghouse did not mind settling, deeming XRP a security would certainly dement the chances of a settlement.

XRP ETF in the making?

Steering away from the Ripple vs. SEC case, Garlinghouse was asked about the chances of an XRP exchange-traded fund [ETF] in the US. The approval of the ProShares Bitcoin ETF got the hopes up high of many firms.

Addressing the same, Garlinghouse put forth a question of why a government entity was filtering or picking winners and losers.

“Why is the SEC picking winners and losers?”

Furthermore, Garlinghouse called out Gary Gensler, the chairman of the SEC for staying mum on Ether. While noting how the SEC has been consistently asking for clarity pertaining to everything crypto-related, Garlinghouse pointed out that it was rather “ironic” for the SEC to keep its lips sealed about Ether.

The citizens of the US had to wait long and hard to garner a Bitcoin ETF. Several speculate that an altcoin ETF in the US was still a far-fetched thought.

Ripple’s former CEO Chris Larsen onboards a new attorney to fend off SEC’s lawsuit

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Ripple has had quite a rough year. While the globe has been battling with the second wave of COVID, Ripple dealt with the lawsuit issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC] of the United States of America. As the lawsuit prolongs, Chris Larsen, who was also charged for being a part of the company, has found a new attorney to represent him in the case.

The SEC went on to label XRP as a security. In addition, it accused Ripple of engaging in the sales of “unregistered securities.” It charged the platform’s current and former CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, as well as Chris Larsen, respectively, of being a part of the same.

Ripple was represented in the case by a team of 21 lawyers, while Larsen was represented by four lawyers, namely Kristina Anne Bunting, Justin David Ward, Martin Flumenbaum, and Michael E. Gertzman. Another name was added to this list as a new lawyer jumped onboard.

Ripple vs. SEC

James K.Filan, an attorney representing the crypto platform, revealed that attorney Sarah J. Prostko was the latest to join Larsen’s team of lawyers. Welcoming the attorney, Filan tweeted,

“Attorney Sarah J. Prostko has appeared in the case on behalf of Chris Larsen. Welcome to Team Ripple.”

With a B.A. degree from American University, Prostko went on to finish law at the New York School of Law, J.D.

Ripple
Ripple's former CEO Chris Larsen onboards a new attorney to fend off SEC's lawsuit 3

The case has been taking many turns and about two months ago, the SEC sought the personal financial records of Garlinghouse as well as Larsen, however, the court shot down this demand calling it “irrelevant” to the case.

Additionally, Garlinghouse and several others including the XRP army was seen yearning for better regulations. With the change in leadership in the SEC, Garlinghouse hopes for better days for the platform. He said,

“I’m hopeful that as a new administration comes into the SEC, there’s an opportunity to revisit some of those conversations. And as you may know, and may recall Jay Clayton as the chair of the SEC, the day before he left office, he brought this lawsuit against Ripple and against me personally, against Chris Larson personally. And we don’t think that made a lot of sense, given that XRP had been trading in the marketplace for eight years, literally nearly a trillion dollars of XRP has traded out there.”

Ripple’s CEO Hopes To Garner Better Regulatory Clarity With New SEC Leadership

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XRP witnessed a drastic fall over the last couple of months, all thanks to the SEC lawsuit against Ripple. The altcoin was trading for $0.58 with a 5.49% surge in the last 24-hours. The coin was labeled a security and lost its spot on an array of prominent cryptocurrency exchanges following the lawsuit. While this negated trading activity in the XRP market, Ripple continued to face the wrath of the lawsuit.

Appearing in a recent interview with Bloomberg, Brad Garlinghouse, the CEO of Ripple revealed his stance on the ongoing case and his expectations from the new team of the Securities and Exchange Commission of the United States.

Ripple CEO: US The Only Country Viewing XRP As Security

The lack of regulatory clarity in the US has been time and again pointed out by a several individuals across the globe. Ripple, however, seemed to have realized it the hard way. While platform tries to fend of all the charges against it, Garlinghouse pointed out that the lawsuit was against the entire crypto industry rather than just Ripple itself. He suggested that the US has been a laggard in delivering a clear regulatory environment. Countries like the UK, Japan, Singapore as well as Switzerland, have managed to deliver a better picture in the same, making the US the only country on the planet to label XRP as a security, he added.

Speaking about the next steps in the lawsuit, Garlinghouse said,


“I’m hopeful that as a new administration comes into the SEC, there’s an opportunity to revisit some of those conversations. And as you may know, and may recall Jay Clayton as the chair of the SEC, the day before he left office, he brought this lawsuit against Ripple and against me personally, against Chris Larson personally. And we don’t think that made a lot of sense, given that XRP had been trading in the marketplace for eight years, literally nearly a trillion dollars of XRP has traded out there.”

While Gary Gensler is on his way to become the next SEC chairman, Garlinghouse seeks an opportunity to have a conversation with a new leadership. He further suggested, “that’s constructive for ripple and really for the whole crypto industry to provide that clarity and allow people to participate in these markets and to build companies around these technologies.”

Brad Garlinghouse Urges Court To Terminate SEC Lawsuit Against Him

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The CEO of Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse, has reportedly filed a motion to suspend the lawsuit that the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC] of the United States imposed against the crypto platform.

While Ripple has time and again tried to diminish claims of XRP being a security, the SEC outrightly accused Ripple of selling unregistered securities. Despite Ripple denying this, the SEC went on to prolong this lawsuit. Amidst this, Brad Garlinghouse decided to write to the Federal Judge urging her to terminate the lawsuit against him.

Brad Garlinghouse Believes SEC’s Lawsuit Against Him Is “Regulatory Overreach.”

The SEC hit Ripple with the lawsuit back in December 2020, however, this lawsuit went in for a little alteration. The amended version pointed out that the CEO of the company, Brad Garlinghouse, along with its former CEO Chris Larsen was part of manipulating the XRP market. Further denying these accusations, a recent letter submitted to Federal Judge Analisa Torres, by Garlinghouse’s lawyers on behalf of the CEO suggested that SEC’s lawsuit against him should be dismissed on grounds of regulatory overreach.

The letter further suggested that Garlinghouse had alerted the SEC of its inaccuracies during the investigative process itself. However, the same “defects” have reportedly been carried forward in its amended version as well. The letter further read,

“The SEC has not adequately alleged that Mr. Garlinghouse knew or recklessly disregarded that Defendants’ transactions in XRP were investment contracts or that Ripple was somehow acting improperly in selling XRP such that he can be liable for aiding and abetting Ripple’s sales. Nor – under Supreme Court and Second Circuit precedent – can the SEC establish that Mr. Garlinghouse’s sales and offers of XRP fall within the territorial scope of the Securities Act.”

Brad Garlinghouse, has about four lawyers –  Alexander Javad Janghorbani, Lucas Dehaan Hakkenberg, Matthew Solomon as well as Samuel Loewenson Levander representing him against the SEC. A total of twenty-one lawyers are helping Ripple in this lawsuit.

While Ripple awaits trial, XRP continues to slump like the other coins in the market.

Ripple Onboards New Senior Vice Prez Of Engineering From Amazon Amidst SEC Lawsuit

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2020 ended on a bitter note for Ripple as well as the XRP community. The SEC lawsuit caused a lot of commotion in the market which led to the altcoin bagging limited gains from the latest crypto rally. The SEC claims that XRP is a security while Ripple stands strong with the narrative that it is not. This tiff between the two XRP to slump all the way down to $0.20. The platform had previously expressed its urge to leave the US citing lack of regulatory clarity as one of its reasons, it seems like it was too slow to do so. Ripple did not limit its functions as the platform was out and about. The crypto platform’s latest recruitment is substantial proof of the same.

Ripple Recruits Amazon Executive

The show must go on. Ripple seems to be complying with this motto despite its clash with the SEC. A recent tweet from the CEO of Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse revealed that the team had a new Senior Vice President of Engineering who previously served Amazon as the Vice President of Delivery Experience. Garlinghouse’s tweet read,

“Ripple’s all-star engineering team continues to grow – thrilled to welcome Dev as our new SVP of Engineering!”
Devraj Varadhan in an elaborate post on Ripple’s blog pointed out that he worked for Amazon for over 15 years and decided to join Ripple to aid the platform’s vision of enabling the Internet of Value [IoV]. He pointed out that the success of companies comes from the obsession with their customers, the weightage of invention, engineering strength as well as operational rigor. The world figured the importance of digitalization during the pandemic, as several firms step into digitalization, Varadhan seems to be getting into the process with an already established platform.

He further wrote,

“One of the most important lessons that I carry with me from my time at Amazon is the idea of “divine discontent” when it comes to serving customers.”
While XRP did not really make a lot of profit during this bull run, the news of its latest recruit didn’t act as a catalyst either. The altcoin managed to follow the trail of the ongoing trend and surged to $0.30 with a 4.60% surge in the last 24-hours.