Ripple's XRP started December by reaching a new high in the last 7 years, surpassing USD 2. It was the top 10 cryptocurrency by market capitalization with the best performance, quadrupling its price in less than a month. This increase allowed XRP to surpass BNB and Solana in market capitalization and is now in the top 4.

But what is mainly driving this rise? Although the main one is the drag effect generated by bitcoin over the last month for all altcoins, the possible outcome of the legal dispute that Ripple, the issuer of XRP, faces with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), is one of the main factors that has raised optimism and demand for the cryptocurrency.

For years, the SEC accused Ripple of violating securities law by issuing XRP without prior registration with the agency, arguing that it should be considered a security and therefore be under its jurisdiction. This event caused the price of XRP to collapse at that time. However, a judge ruled in July 2023 that XRP could be considered a security in certain cases of issuance, but not in all. Although this ambiguity generated optimism in the market, it also raised doubts about the future. The SEC appealed the decision, so the case will go back to trial.