On January 29th, it was reported that as the lawsuit between the US SEC and Ripple entered the second circuit court of appeals, the SEC has removed the civil lawsuit related to Ripple from its website, signaling a critical phase in the ongoing legal battle over the classification of XRP. However, a user on X pointed out that "the SEC website is not important," and emphasized that the appeal is still valid in the national PACER system of the court. The user claimed to be a lawyer and stated, "After logging in, the last record is Ripple's request to extend the deadline for submitting a brief. The case status is still 'in progress,' but it may change soon." According to documents submitted by Ripple's legal team, as of January 23, 2025, Ripple has officially requested to submit a response summary by April 16, 2025. On January 15, 2025, the SEC released a summary of the trial, attempting to overturn key aspects of the previous ruling, especially regarding the sale of XRP to retail investors. The district court previously ruled that while XRP itself is not a security, Ripple's direct sales to institutional investors constitute securities transactions. Tokens sold through secondary trading platforms do not meet securities standards. The SEC now argues that retail investors were expected to profit from Ripple's promotional activities. "Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results," Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said of the appeal. Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty described it as a "rehashing of already failed arguments." The initial $125 million civil penalty against Ripple still stands, far below the SEC's initial demand of $1 billion. The outcome of the case in the appeals stage is expected to impact the regulatory framework for digital assets and their classification in the United States. (Crypto Briefing)