Ripple fired back at the SEC this week, deconstructing the agency’s attempt to retain the expert testimony of Andrea Fox, its Enforcement Division’s accountant.
Ripple says that Fox did a poor job summarizing its financial situation and that if she’s the agency’s summary witness, the SEC was required to disclose her in advance and not ambush the company.
Ripple vs. the SEC is getting ever closer to a conclusion. The latest battle revolves around Andrea Fox, an accountant from the agency’s Enforcement Division whose witness the SEC submitted post-discovery to support its $10 billion penalty proposal. Ripple fought back against Fox this week amid a decline in volatility on the XRP market.
As Crypto News Flash reported, the SEC filed a motion in New York on Monday to defend its inclusion of Fox as a summary witness. Ripple was quick to counter with a motion of its own a few days later to respond to the SEC’s defence and double down on its motion from late April to have Fox struck.
#Ripple‘s game plan in action! Filing a letter on May 1, 2024, to support its motion to strike new expert materials and counter the SEC’s opposition dated April 29, 2024. The stakes are high, and the #XRP community is watching closely! pic.twitter.com/MoLMfif8xq
— Collin Brown (@CollinBrownXRP) May 3, 2024
In its motion, the California company argued that the SEC “has failed to show that the declaration of Andrea Fox is summary evidence rather than expert testimony.”
The agency is trying to cunningly have Fox declared a summary expert because, in that role, she can be included post-discovery. In its motion, the agency admits that if she were an expert witness, she would be ineligible due to the timing.
Ripple goes into great detail to prove that Fox can’t be a mere summary witness; in one instance, it cites her review of the company’s financial records, from which she makes her informed deductions. But as the company argues, “this is not basic arithmetic” that any layman could do; only an expert can come up with such informed analysis.
Ripple Doubles Down on Fox Exclusion—What Now for XRP?
Ripple doubled down further on its request to have Fox struck, stating:
Even if Fox were a summary witness, rather than an expert, the parties’ agreement and the Court’s scheduling order required the SEC to disclose her before the close of delivery.
In a joint letter, the two sides had agreed that the blockchain firm reserves the right “to seek discovery, including a deposition, with respect to any such expert or witness…”
Meanwhile, XRP trades at $0.5272 at press time, dipping 2.38% for the day.
XRP continues to trade below the 50-day and 200-day exponential moving averages, which is a bearish signal. If XRP breaks past the upper trend line in the graph below, it could test the 50-day EMA and stand a chance to breach the 200-day EMA if the bulls take control.
Other technical indicators, including the 14-day relative strength index, suggest that XRP bears will be in charge in the short term. However, the Ripple case remains the biggest catalyst for the token’s price movement and could swing it either way, depending on the outcome.
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