In just a matter of few days, XRP has gained a linchpin position in the crypto industry. While Bitcoin and Ethereum and other alt coins are all rising, XRP continues to rise more smartly despite all its adversities. The SEC investigations are in full swing and now they are looking for a needle in a haystack to pin Ripple down. The FUD on Ripple is emanating from legislative pressure but the public has started to ignore them. Otherwise, why have the prices risen the way it has?
The latest from SEC is a series of Slack conversations Ripple employees had at various times. SEC says that Ripple is hiding these conversations from them. It looks like many of the depositions on the Ripple vs SEC case, this too won’t be made public. The SEC knows that Slack conversations can be subpoenaed in a court of law. Ripple says they don’t have it. So SEC has been oral interviewing Ripple staff as to what they can recollect to pin them. Having lost virtually everything so far in this case, I don’t think these efforts by SEC will hold any water.
Ripple’s legal team of about 25 top class lawyers is probably one of the strongest any private company in US can put across. Believe me Ripple has enough money to burn on this and having reached so far they will do it. Meanwhile, the shoe can drop any time for the case to be closed. In all fairness, I see a settlement between SEC and Ripple with a slap on the wrist for Ripple or Ripple winning the case which will be the best outcome. Can’t see Ripple losing this case now. Don’t think there has ever been a case where the regulatory body has been on the back foot and so under prepared in accusing a private company.
Investing in a crypto is not like investing in an established company like Amazon and Facebook with billions of dollars in cash flow. But remember this, did anyone among readers of this letter envisage Amazon to be a behemoth like what it is now from the humble beginnings of a digital book company? Did anyone think Facebook will grow out to be such a heavy-weight from the beginnings of an university messaging service?
Cryptocurrencies are part of the new revolution in technological disruptions that you are going to witness on a global scale. I am not really qualified to explain all these with the relevant changes that will happen but the more I read about it, I am very excited and the early investors in the right sectors will benefit hugely.
So for those who have still not understood what Ripple does, let me explain some of the most important functions and what it means for the whole financial system. You may want to read all my past reports if you are serious about Ripple.
Ripple’s greatest competitor is SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Transactions). They process transactions for 11,000 banking institutions including the Fed. This is a big deal. The SWIFT technology is more than 50 years old. With nearly 300 major banks and other financial institutions having tied up with Ripple and Ripple now partnering with Visa, MasterCard and PayPal it is only a matter of time SWIFT will strike a deal with Ripple or Ripple will buy Swift.
While Ripple is not allowed to operate in US because of the lawsuit, it is business as usual for Ripple in all other parts of the world. They have already made big tie-ups in Japan, Singapore, Philippines and Thailand. It is rumored big tie-ups are coming in South America and India too.
Ripple Lab’s team of 100 is comprised of deeply experienced cryptographers, security experts, distributed network developers, Silicon Valley and Wall Street veterans. They contribute code to the open-source software, as well as to develop tools for and recruit financial institutions and payment networks to use Ripple. The team shepherds a movement to evolve finance so that payment systems are open, secure, constructive and globally inclusive.
If you are serious about Ripple, you may want to look up the following veteran names who are associated with Ripple one way or the other: Rosie Rios, Donald Donahue, Sandie O’ Connor, Zoe Cruz, Sendi Young and all other eminent board members. If Ripple was not a big thing, do you think the above individuals will lend their names after an exemplary and illustrious career in their field of expertise.
Now on to some technical analysis on XRP. The move up in XRP from 0.17 to 1.98 was wave one. The move down to 0.50 was wave two. That area was tested twice strongly forming an excess (Market Profile terminology) and double bottom. I think the move since then is wave three. There will be subdivisions to this wave and pull backs can be expected. But a significant resistance at 1.10 was crossed today. The next resistance is at 1.30. I am expecting some pull back from that level but it looks like overall it’s blue skies for XRP from now on.
Abraham George is a seasoned investment manager with more than 40 years of experience in trading & investment and portfolio management spanning diverse environments like banks (HSBC, ADCB), sovereign wealth fund (ADIA), a royal family office and a hedge fund.