XRP gains 30% after Ripple gets permission to explain ‘fair notice defense’ vs. SEC

XRP price rose by nearly 30% in less than a week amid positive sentiment around the court case, in which the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) claims that Ripple sold XRP as illegal securities.

SEC vs. Ripple

Judge Analisa Torres has granted Ripple permission to respond to the SEC's Memorandum of Law in support of Motion to Strike fair notice defense, according to court documents.

Additionally, Judge Torres also ordered to unseal three documents concerning the SEC vs. Ripple case, including Ripple's CEO Brad Garlinghouse's email thread and deposition notice and founder Chris Larsen's email string.

Markets received Judge Torres's orders positively. Soon after they made it to the wire, XRP's price rallied by almost 30%, rising from its Feb. 3's lowest level of $0.058 to as high as $0.782 on Feb. 7.

JUST ADDED to our Documents Library:✅Order by Judge Torres Granting in Part, and Denying in Part, Motions by Defendants @Ripple @bgarlinghouse @chrislarsensf to seal some exhibits to previous motions, and more (1/3) https://t.co/zubKVutRzE

The upside move picked momentum also as Jeremy Hogan, partner at law firm Hogan & Hogan, noted that the SEC vs. Ripple might be heading toward a verdict.

It's good because we are moving into the second phase of the case where "things" are going to happen.

XRP "death cross" ahead?

The latest bout of buying in the XRP market also appeared as the token retested its multi-month support trendline, as shown in the chart below.

XRP now faces a resistance confluence ahead in the form of its 20-week (green) and 50-week (red) exponential moving averages (EMAs). Meanwhile, the two moving averages look poised to form a "death cross" should the 20-week EMA cross below the 50-week EMA — a classic sell signal.

Nonetheless, a decisive, high-volumed close above the said EMAs may limit the selloff risks associated with the death cross. Moreover, an extended upside momentum may have XRP price retest its descending trendline resistance near $1.26, a 50% price increase from current levels.

Related: Ripple announces $200M share buyback and expresses optimism for 2022

Alexander Mamasidikov, the co-founder of crypto wallet service MinePlex, ignored the downside warnings, asserting that the end to a long-standing court battle between the SEC and Ripple would prove bullish for XRP.

"With the anticipation that the SEC-induced legal battle alleging the status of XRP as security will be settled this year, the current buy ups can be seen as an avenue to stack up at a discount for possible price surge in the longer term," he said, adding:

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