Defending against SEC to cost Ripple $200M, CEO Brad Garlinghouse says

Ripple’s CEO reveals $200 million spent defending the SEC lawsuit, and laments about U.S. crypto regulation and a politics-first policy, advising entrepreneurs to avoid the United States.

Ripple has spent $200 million defending the case brought against it by the United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), according to CEO Brad Garlinghouse. 

Garlinghouse dropped the figure during a fireside chat at the Dubai Fintech Summit on May 8. He stated that the U.S. is stuck compared with the regulatory progress of the United Arab Emirates virtual asset regulatory authority and the recent Markets in Crypto-Assets (MICA) bill in the European Union. He went on to share that by the time the case is decided, Ripple will have spent $200 million defending itself against a lawsuit which, from its very beginning, doesn’t make a lot of sense.

In a message to SEC chair Gary Gensler, Garlinghouse expressed regret about the U.S. falling behind significantly as Ripple expands to the United Arab Emirates. According to him, the tough thing about the situation is having a country that has put politics ahead of policy. Garlinghouse said one of the first pieces of advice he gives entrepreneurs when they ask him about getting something started is,” If I were you, I would not start in the United States.” He believes many U.S.-based companies and U.S. public companies would agree.

This is a developing story, and further information will be added as it becomes available.