Ripple reveals SEC lawsuit update and aggressive push into NFT market through its Q2 report

Ripple Labs released its Q2 2022 report highlighting various development aspects, while also highlighting market dynamics affecting its performance. A key highlight of the report was the confirmation of the company’s pursuits aimed at tapping into opportunities in the NFT market. It also reiterated its commitment towards fast-tracking the SEC lawsuit.

The Ripple-SEC lawsuit has dragged on for years and is believed to have slowed down Ripple’s development, as well as XRP’s price action. The company revealed that it is pushing aggressively for the SEC lawsuit to be resolved. It also noted that the lack of regulatory clarity has been a major hurdle that is not only affecting Ripple but one that is a challenge for the entire crypto market.

The SEC lawsuit has not stopped Ripple from pursuing growth opportunities. Ripple confirmed that it is interested in exploring growth opportunities in the NFT market and has plans to integrate NFT support into the XRP Ledger. It also revealed partnerships with major brands such as Lotus Automotive and the Balmain fashion brand to roll out their NFTs on XRPL.

Ripple’s expanded scope

One of the most interesting aspects of the report is the reveal that Ripple has teamed up with FLUF World to develop a new blockchain called Root Network. This network will also be integrated with the XRPL and will use XRP for gas fees. This kind of utility and growth will boost XRP’s demand and price action.

XRP has been stuck in a ranging performance since mid-June. It traded at $0.363 as of 29 July, which is a slight improvement from its current 2022 lows.

Source: TradingView

Despite its relatively limited price range, XRP’s on-chain metrics highlight healthy activity, especially between 28 July and 29 July. For example, its Bitmex and Binance funding rates improved significantly, implying that investor sentiment is improving.

Source: Santiment

The above outcome suggests that the report had a positive impact on stakeholders. This is also reflected in whale transaction counts. For example, the whale transaction count metric registered 12 transactions worth more than $1 million in the last 24 hours at press time. This is the highest number that this metric recorded this week.

Source: Santiment

XRP also maintained a healthy number of transactions worth between $100,000 and $1 million. However, this category did not provide any noteworthy spike compared to the previous week.

Where does XRP stand then? 

XRP’s price action experienced a slight retracement as of 29 July. This suggests that the report was not accretive of the cryptocurrency’s price. This is likely because most stakeholders are still concerned about the SEC’s lawsuit.