Latest discussions have emerged inside the XRP neighborhood about the potential of the U.S. authorities accepting Ripple’s $125 million high quality fee in XRP tokens as a substitute of U.S. {dollars}.
This hypothesis comes amid the U.S. authorities’s announcement to create a crypto asset stockpile for altcoins. Moreover, President Trump’s earlier remarks highlighted the federal government’s potential to carry XRP.
Amid these developments, neighborhood members now recommend that Ripple’s high quality fee may mark the federal government’s first acquisition of XRP.
To recap, in August 2024, a federal courtroom ordered Ripple Labs to pay a $125 million penalty to the U.S. SEC for violations of securities legal guidelines associated to XRP gross sales to institutional buyers.
On the time, Ripple proposed depositing the funds into an escrow account, which the SEC accepted beneath a court-approved association. Nonetheless, whether or not the escrowed funds have been held in U.S. {dollars} or XRP tokens stays unclear.
Now, with current developments surrounding the creation of a U.S. authorities digital asset stockpile, the concept of Ripple’s penalty being settled in XRP reasonably than USD has gained renewed consideration.
Might the U.S. Settle for XRP as Fee?
Distinguished XRP neighborhood member Yassin Mobarak has pointed out the potential of the U.S. authorities accepting XRP as a fee for the high quality. His argument relies on the brand new digital asset stockpile, which can maintain high-quality digital belongings with deep liquidity, equivalent to XRP.
Mobarak means that Ripple may settle its high quality in XRP as a substitute of USD, doubtlessly resulting in a historic first: the U.S. authorities holding XRP.
If this occurs, Mobarak believes the federal government’s curiosity in XRP’s value appreciation may align with that of XRP holders, which may, in flip, foster regulatory readability and wider adoption of the cryptocurrency within the U.S. market.
Authorized Precedents and Professional Opinions
Legal professional Jeremy Hogan has weighed in on the matter, referencing the 1869 Supreme Courtroom case Willard v. Tayloe. This case established that funds in commodities, versus {dollars}, could possibly be legally enforced if each events agreed to the association.
Hogan means that, making use of this precedent, a mutually agreed-upon fee in XRP between the SEC and Ripple could possibly be legally viable.
Nonetheless, a major impediment stays: penalties are sometimes paid to the U.S. Treasury. Whereas the Treasury would oversee the digital asset stockpile, there isn’t a official affirmation that it will settle for XRP as fee as a substitute of USD.
In the meantime, Hogan additionally famous the potential monetary influence. Had Ripple escrowed the penalty in XRP reasonably than USD, the Treasury may have gained practically half a billion {dollars} resulting from XRP’s value appreciation.
Am fascinating sidenote right here is that if Ripple was required to trade XRP for {dollars} again when it escrowed the penalty, the Treasury misplaced out on nearly half a billion {dollars} versus if it had allowed Ripple to simply escrow XRP (because of the value enhance). Half a billion…
— Jeremy Hogan (@attorneyjeremy1) March 7, 2025
On the time of the penalty’s set worth in 2024, XRP was round $0.50. Nonetheless, as we speak, its worth is at over $2.540.
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