Fact-checking Ripple’s Claim that ‘Many G20 Gov’ts’ Call XRP | Crypto Land
Fact-checking Ripple’s Claim that ‘Many G20 Gov’ts’ Call XRP a ‘Currency’.
The struggle between the US Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) and one of the nation’s biggest crypto companies, Ripple, is coming to a head, leading exchanges all over the world, including American giant Coinbase to suspend the XRP token. The SEC has branded XRP a security, and has launched a potentially devastating lawsuit against Ripple.
But Ripple has indicated that it is up for the fight, and in an impassioned defense of the token just ahead of Christmas, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse made the claim that is not a security and that “many other G20 governments call XRP a currency,” leading him to the conclusion that “it is truly confounding that the SEC would take this step.”
But just how true is this claim? Do “many” G20 nations really hold this belief? We decided to find out.
Argentina
We’ve found no evidence of any Argentinian regulator saying anything in particular about XRP. Crypto legislation is very much in its infancy in Argentina.
Australia
A New South Wales judge ruled this year that crypto could be used as a legitimate form of investment, saying that bitcoin (BTC) could be “used as a security” and was a “recognized form of investment,” per the Australian Associated Press. But there is no clear link to XRP in this ruling - or any other that we could find.
Brazil
Ripple has a significant presence in Brazil, but it doesn’t look like anyone in a position of power has ruled on XRP’s legal status.
Canada
Cryptoassets are policed under securities laws in Canada, with no known exemption for XRP, and the country’s Currency Act of 1985, last amended in 2018, only specifies that Canadian dollars are legal tender.
China
Crypto’s name is mud in the Middle Kingdom - at least officially.
France
The situation is more nuanced in France, where the central Bank of France has spoken about XRP’s possible role in powering central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), per Fr24, but we were unable to unearth anything official about its “currency” status or otherwise.
Germany
The picture in Germany is confusing, to say the least. This super long document from the financial regulatory body the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) goes into great detail in its discussion of security tokens specifically, and other tokens, listing the laws that would apply in variety of scenarios. Crucially, however, the regulator refrains from making mention of any particular token. For the TL;DL crew, the answer is a resounding maybe, but nothing close to a firm “yes.”
India
No records or rulings found here.
Indonesia
Indonesia has a number of crypto-related regulations, but we couldn’t find any record of a ruling on XRP’s legal status.
Italy
Crypto still does not have any kind of legal tender status in Italy, and no references to XRP were found on our searches.
Japan
Japan is arguably way ahead of the rest of the world when it comes to crypto regulation, which is all carefully policed by the regulatory Financial Services Agency (FSA). The FSA approves tokens for listing on exchanges, so regularly goes into great detail on the legal status of individual altcoins. Ripple’s closest Asian ally is the Japanese financial giant SBI, which this week issued a statement pointing out that “XRP is a ‘cryptoasset’ under the Japanese Funds Settlement Law, and not a ‘security’ under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.”
South Korea
Seoul has remained silent on the matter, although sources familiar with the matter told that the government may seek to adopt a policy of token approval for exchanges at an unspecified future date.
