Ripple co-founder keeps selling XRP at record pace

Ripple is in a delicate situation with the SEC over the legal status of the XRP and hopes that the appointment of a new director to head the regulator will lead to an agreement. Jed McCaleb, who is indifferent to the case, continues to sell tokens.

For Ripple, the new Biden administration could be the first step towards appeasement. The company risks indeed heavy sanctions. And the legal status of its XRP token is more than uncertain.

Ripple’s management has high hopes for this political alternation. CEO Brad Garlinghouse welcomes the appointment of the new head of the SEC, the stock exchange regulator.

“Congratulations to Gary Gensler! We are ready to work with the SEC leadership and the Biden Administration as a whole to chart a course for blockchain and crypto innovation in the U.S.,” he writes on Twitter.

Ripple’s General Counsel, Stu Alderoty, also wants to believe in regulatory renewal, and especially regulatory clarity. And according to him, the regulation of crypto will be one of the priorities of the Biden team.

“Smart, well-thought-out regulations that are effectively communicated and consistently applied can help level the playing field and foster innovation and widespread adoption here in the United States,” he says.

These legal wrangles, however, leave another former Ripple figure rather indifferent. And with good reason, since Jed McCaleb, its co-founder, has not been a member of management since 2014. On the other hand, he benefits from an impressive exit package in the form of XRP.

And McCaleb is regularly talked about for his massive sales of chips. Over the whole of 2020, he was earning $411 million from the sale of tokens. And the pace of these transactions is accelerating.

Over the previous five years, from 2014 to 2019, Jed McCaleb sold nearly a billion XRPs. In the space of a year, in 2020, he sold an equivalent number of tokens this time. And after 25 days without activity, these disposals were resumed.

Indeed, crypto analyst Leonidas Hadjiloizou reports that Ripple’s co-founder has sold 28.6 million XRPs. This represents a capital gain for him of $8.5 million at the current rate.

In addition, his reserves of XRP remain substantial. Jed McCaleb would still have nearly 3.25 billion tokens, the equivalent of $970 million, in his wallets. However, it would probably be better for him financially if Ripple could find common ground with the SEC.