Veteran cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase announced that it would fully suspend XRP trading by January 2021, following the lawsuit filed against Ripple by the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
According to a blog post on Monday (Dec. 28, 2020), Coinbase stated that while XRP trading will be moving to “limit only” starting December 28, the exchange is planning to suspend XRP trading on January 19, 2021, 10 AM Pacific time.
Despite the suspension, Coinbase said that customers will still have access to their XRP wallets, adding that it “will remain available for deposit and withdraw functionality after the trading suspension.”
“Further, customers will remain eligible for the previously announced Spark airdrop (subject to approval in certain jurisdictions), and we will continue to support XRP on Coinbase Custody and Coinbase Wallet.”
Coinbase’s decision comes after the SEC sued Ripple. The U.S. securities watchdog alleged that Ripple was carrying out unregistered securities offerings to the tune of $1.3 billion. The news consequently tanked the XRP price, causing the token’s value to shed another 17% at the time of this writing to a price of $0.24, and 60% over the past ten days since the SEC saga had started.
Apart from the XRP price plummeting, different cryptocurrency exchanges have taken action since the SEC lawsuit. As reported by CryptoPotato, exchanges like Beaxy, CrossTower, crypto fund manager Bitwise, and Hong Kong crypto exchange OSL have delisted and suspended XRP trading on their platforms.
Another crypto exchange, Bitstamp, recently announced that it would halt XRP trading and deposits for its U.S.-based customers. According to the exchange, the suspension will take effect on January 8, 2021.
Meanwhile, Ripple’s CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, stated that the company would fight and win the legal battle. The company also released a document to counter the SEC’s claims.
Amid the avalanche of negativity surrounding Ripple at the moment, the company seems to have a supporter in its corner. The CEO of SBI Holdings, a financial services company, Yoshitaka Kitao, expressed optimism that Ripple would win the case. The SBI Holdings chief said:
“Japan’s FSA has already made it clear that XRP is not a security. I’m optimistic that Ripple will prevail in the final ruling in the US. SBI Holdings remains a steadfast partner to Ripple, and looks forward to expanding together in Asia.”
