The US Securities and Exchange Commission cannot seal certain documents relating to a 2018 speech by former agency director Bill Hinman in its case against Ripple, a judge ruled on Tuesday.
The SEC wanted to seal the entirety of the “Hinman speech documents” that contain “non-public discussions” between SEC officials regarding that speech, said Judge Analisa Torres of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. .
In a now infamous speech, former SEC director of corporate finance Bill Hinman expressed his own views and not the SEC’s, saying that if a digital asset were “decentralized enough” they could no longer be a security – which could be beneficial to Ripple. in the matter of.
According to the filing, the SEC had argued that the documents should be sealed because of the “apparent lack of relevance of these documents to the summary judgment motion” and because their disclosure “would be highly prejudicial to the SEC.”
“The Court disagrees,” said Judge Torres. “Regardless of whether the Court ultimately determines whether the Hinman speech documents are admissible, or whether the Court relies on the documents in rulings on summary judgment motions, they are judicial documents subject to a stronger presumption of public access because they are ‘relevant. are capable of performing judicial functions and useful in the judicial process.’”
Judge Torres agreed to keep certain Ripple documents sealed, including audited financial statements and forecasts.
“The audited financial statements, including past financial statements, include Ripple’s confidential balance sheet, revenue and expense figures, pricing, costs, revenue, profit information regarding past and current business lines, third-party investments, litigation expenses and settlements.” , and other information that, if publicly disclosed, could cause significant harm to Ripple,” Judge Torres said.
SEC vs Ripple
Ripple has been embroiled in a long-standing dispute with the SEC since 2020, when the agency accused the company as well as Garlinghouse and co-founder Christian Larsen of raising $1.3 billion through the sale of XRP.
A decision is still expected this year.