The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has objected to Ripple’s attempt to remove expert witness Andrea Fox from the case, stating that it is legally permissible and does not constitute undisclosed expert testimony. The outcome of this legal battle is eagerly awaited by the market, with analysts predicting that XRP will experience a 20% increase in the short term.
The legal dispute between Ripple and the SEC, which began when former chair Jay Clayton accused the company of securities violations in December 2020, is now nearing its conclusion. In its latest move, the SEC has responded to Ripple’s motion to strike one of its expert witnesses.
On Monday, the SEC filed a motion in the Southern District of New York defending the inclusion of Andrea Fox’s declaration as a summary witness. The agency argues that Ripple’s attempt to strike Fox’s declaration is based on incorrect claims that it constitutes undisclosed expert testimony. According to the SEC, the declaration is standard summary evidence that is permissible in supporting calculations for disgorgement.
The SEC clarifies that Fox’s declaration is not an expert’s report, does not rely on specialized experience, and does not present any opinions. Instead, it applies basic arithmetic to Ripple’s financial records to facilitate the presentation of evidence to Judge Torres.
The agency asserts that Fox’s summary is consistent with another SEC summary that Judge Torres allegedly allowed earlier and even referenced in her summary judgment. The SEC points out that this is not the first time Ripple has attempted to have the judge dismiss its expert witness, but their previous attempt was unsuccessful.
As for the future of XRP, it is currently trading at $0.4993, with a 2.5% loss over the past day. Although the token experienced an intra-day low at $0.4917, it has since reversed the trend and is on an upward trajectory. However, XRP has seen a decrease of over 20% in the past month.
Analysts suggest that for XRP to initiate a bull rally, it must surpass its closest resistance at $0.53. The token has been trading below this level since last Wednesday, and prior to that, it served as support from mid-February to early April. The next significant resistance levels are $0.55 and $0.64, which align with the token’s Fibonacci retracement levels.
CoinCodex predicts that XRP will surge by over 20% in May, reaching a high of $0.6716 within the next five days.
Overall, the outcome of the legal battle between Ripple and the SEC will have a significant impact on XRP’s future trajectory.