US crypto exchanges give XRP listings a second chance after court ruling

After two years, Coinbase and Kraken said they will re-enable XRP trading, iTrustCapital announced it already relisted the token, and exchanges including Gemini may follow suit.

Following a victory in federal court against the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ripple Labs may see the XRP token returning to cryptocurrency exchanges.

In a July 13 tweet, crypto exchange Gemini said it planned to explore listing XRP for spot and derivatives trading after a court ruled the token was not a security under the SEC’s purview, while Coinbase and Kraken said they will re-enable XRP trading for the first time in roughly two years. The SEC has taken enforcement actions against exchanges including Binance and Coinbase for alleged unregistered securities offerings, but the legal precedent from the Ripple case may allow exchanges offering XRP trading to breathe a little easier.

Trading is anticipated to begin later today, if liquidity conditions are met. Once sufficient supply of this asset is established trading on our XRP-USD, XRP-USDT and XRP-EUR trading pairs will launch in phases. Support for XRP may be restricted in some supported jurisdictions.

— Coinbase Assets ️ (@CoinbaseAssets) July 13, 2023

“This is a big deal,” said Crypto Council for Innovation CEO Sheila Warren on the Ripple ruling. “It’s been clear since this case was filed that it would have implications across the entire industry. This fundamentally undercuts the SEC’s argument that it has the authority over these underlying assets and that regulatory clarity already exists.”

Other exchanges which delisted XRP in 2020 and 2021 including OKX have lauded the court decision, but not suggested whether they planned to return to trading the token. Crypto firm iTrustCapital claimed to be the first to bring back XRP after two years, while crypto exchange Kraken’s initial message on social media following the court ruling was more ambiguous:

pic.twitter.com/btSHZBF9xf

— Kraken Exchange (@krakenfx) July 13, 2023

Related: Why is XRP price up today?

The SEC announced charges against Ripple, CEO Brad Garlinghouse and co-founder Chris Larsen in December 2020, prompting a mass exodus of XRP listings on exchanges offering services to U.S. users, including Gemini and Kraken. Crypto payments processor and exchange operator Uphold said at the time it would not take action on XRP until the conclusion of the court case.

“We are proud to have supported and stood by the XRP community,” said Uphold on the court ruling.