The court denied the SEC’s motion to keep the drafts of William Hinman’s speech on air status confidential.
Judge Analisa Torres ruled that materials related to former SEC director of corporate finance William Hinman’s June 2018 speech cannot be excluded from public access.
They are part of the court documents related to the litigation with Ripple. Torres explained that these internal agency materials could significantly affect the court’s decision in the case.
A few years ago, Hinman said bitcoin and ether were not considered securities.
When the SEC accused Ripple of offering unregistered securities in December 2020, the company’s management began citing this very statement by Hinman in an attempt to convince the court that XRP could not be considered an investment contract either.
Ripple demanded that the agency provide drafts on Hinman’s controversial speech. In turn, the regulator has gone to great lengths to avoid handing over Ripple documents.
However, last October, Ripple still managed to obtain the requested documents. The SEC then filed a motion to shut down public access to the drafts of Hinman’s speech, but the agency’s request was denied;
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse tweeted that it was a small victory for the company.
“Another victory for transparency! Hinman’s unedited emails will soon be in the public domain. Stay tuned for updates, and our lawyers will make sure it happens as soon as possible,” Garlinghouse wrote.
The head of Ripple recently advised cryptocurrency companies not to open a business in the U.S., or they too could face prosecution from regulators.