The next big thing in Ripple and its ongoing battle with the SEC may not be just about the $125 million fine anymore but about how that fine might be paid, according to Jeremy Hogan. As a well-known legal expert in the XRP community suggests, there is a chance Ripple could pay the bill not in cash, but in the token itself.
Let’s back up a bit. Back in August 2023, a federal judge finally dropped the hammer, ruling that Ripple had violated securities laws by selling XRP to institutional investors without proper registration. The result was a $125 million fine and a permanent injunction to prevent future violations.
Now, Hogan has started a conversation about Ripple paying that fine in XRP instead of dollars.
The idea is based on an old Supreme Court case from 1869. Back then, the court allowed a contract to be fulfilled in gold instead of dollars. The logic is that sometimes specific performance – like paying in a commodity – makes more sense than sticking strictly to currency.
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Fast forward to today, and the argument is that Ripple and the SEC could agree to settle the fine in XRP, especially since the U.S. Treasury oversees the Digital Asset Stockpile, to which the token may be invited.
But here’s the catch. The $125 million is a penalty, and penalties typically go directly to the U.S. Treasury. If the SEC is not onboard with the XRP-for-dollars swap, it is a nonstarter.
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Meanwhile, the U.S. government’s digital asset strategy does not seem to be doing XRP any favors, despite being discussed at the highest levels. Bitcoin gets the VIP treatment as a long-term reserve asset, locked away in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
But XRP? Along with other altcoins like Cardano and Solana, it may be sitting in the U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile, where the Treasury can sell it whenever it wants, it seems.
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