XRP Price Hit Record High. Watch This SEC Vs. Ripple Development Today. — Barrons.com

By Elsa Ohlen and Janet H. ChoXRP price jumped to an all-time high Wednesday.The price of the popular altcoin, used to facilitate and settle transactions on the Ripple payment platform, soared 14% to $2.99 over the past 24 hours, beating its previous all-time high of $2.89 set in early December, before retreating, according to CoinDesk data. Crypto prices may vary across different trading platforms.The move comes during speculation about a positive development in the appeal case Securities and Exchange Commission versus Ripple by investors. The SEC sued Ripple in 2020 saying that it was offering an unregistered security with XRP.In August 2024, a judge ordered Ripple to pay a $125 million fine for violating investor-protection laws--far less than the $2 billion sought by the SEC. The regulator appealed that decision in October and is expected to submit its opening brief as part of the appeal process on Wednesday."The courts are increasingly inclined to [Ripple's] arguments, pointing out the excessive rigidity of the SEC," FxPro analyst Alex Kuptsikevich said.President-elect Donald Trump has nominated crypto-friendly Paul Atkins to head the SEC. Former SEC commissioner Atkins, if approved by the Senate, will replace current Chair Gary Gensler, who has cracked down on the crypto industry. Gensler is resigning at noon on Monday, Jan. 20.Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, who last week posted a photo of himself and Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty on X after their dinner with Trump, said Tuesday that "Gensler, very much on brand — completely dismissive of the 2024 election and the American public — fully commits to his failed 'regulation-by-enforcement agenda to the bitter, bitter end. #Sad"Alderoty wrote in a separate post on Tuesday that "on January 20, Gensler's war on crypto ends at the SEC."The Securities and Exchange Commission couldn't immediately be reached.Other cryptos were rising after core inflation cooled in December and came in below expectations.Bitcoin was up 4.3% to $100,654, and Ether rose 7.8% to $3,468, according to CoinDesk data. Solana climbed 9.2%, and Dogecoin gained 6.2%.Write to Elsa Ohlen at [email protected] and to Janet H. Cho at [email protected] content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.