Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse called the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s dismissal of its four-year lawsuit against Ripple Labs a "victory for the entire industry."
This week, the SEC dropped one of the crypto sector’s most contentious legal battles—a four-year case against Ripple Labs. In another pivotal regulatory development, Solana-based futures exchange-traded funds (ETFs) debuted in the U.S., potentially paving the way for spot Solana (SOL) ETF approvals as lawmakers’ "next logical step."
SEC’s XRP Reversal Is an "Industry-Wide Win": Ripple CEO
At the Blockworks 2025 Digital Asset Summit in New York, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse described the SEC’s decision to drop its long-running case against XRP Ledger developer Ripple Labs as a "victory for the industry."
On March 19, Garlinghouse revealed that the SEC would dismiss its charges against Ripple, concluding a four-year lawsuit accusing the blockchain firm of selling $1.3 billion in unregistered securities in 2020.
"This feels like a win for the industry and the start of a new chapter," Garlinghouse said during the summit, attended by Cointelegraph.
👉 Read more about Ripple’s legal breakthrough
Solana Futures ETF Gains Institutional Traction Despite Limited Inflows
Industry analysts suggest the launch of the first SOL futures ETF could signal a major milestone, potentially accelerating institutional adoption and setting the stage for the first spot SOL ETF.
Volatility Shares is set to list two SOL futures ETFs on March 20: the Volatility Shares Solana ETF (SOLZ) and the Volatility Shares 2X Solana ETF (SOLT).
Ryan Lee, Chief Analyst at Bitget Research, told Cointelegraph:
"The launch of the first Solana ETFs in the U.S. could significantly boost Solana’s market position by increasing demand and liquidity for SOL, potentially narrowing the gap with Ethereum’s market cap."
Lee added that Solana ETFs may enhance institutional adoption by offering regulated investment vehicles, attracting billions in capital, and strengthening Solana’s competitiveness against Ethereum—though Ethereum’s entrenched ecosystem remains a hurdle.
Pump.fun Launches Its Own DEX, Drops Raydium
Pump.fun unveiled its decentralized exchange (DEX), PumpSwap, positioning it as a primary trading hub for Solana-based memecoins—replacing Raydium for liquidity migrations.
According to Pump.fun, PumpSwap mirrors functionalities of Raydium V4 and Uniswap V2, aiming to deliver a frictionless trading experience.
"Migration was a major pain point—it slowed momentum and added complexity," Pump.fun stated. "Now, migrations are instant and free."
Bybit: 89% of Stolen $1.4B in Crypto Remains Traceable Post-Hack
Following one of history’s largest crypto heists, over 88% of the $1.4 billion stolen from Bybit remains traceable, with blockchain investigators working to freeze and recover funds.
On February 21, Bybit suffered a catastrophic breach, losing $1.4 billion in liquid staked Ethereum (stETH), Mantle Staked ETH (mETH), and other assets. Security firms attribute the attack to North Korea’s Lazarus Group.
Bybit CEO Ben Zhou confirmed in a March 20 X post:
"Hacked funds totaled $1.4B (~500K ETH). 88.87% is traceable, 7.59% vanished, and 3.54% is frozen."
Funds were primarily converted to Bitcoin (BTC) and routed through mixers like Wasabi, CryptoMixer, Railgun, and Tornado Cash.
"Wolf of Wall Street" Memecoin by Libra, Melania Creator Crashes 99%
Hayden Davis, creator of the MELANIA and Libra tokens, launched WOLF, a Solana-based memecoin with over 80% insider-controlled supply—leading to a 99% collapse within days.
Bubblemaps analysis revealed 82% of WOLF’s supply was held by a single entity, mirroring patterns in Davis’ earlier projects. The token plummeted from a $42.9M peak to $570K by March 16.
DeFi Market Overview
Most top-100 cryptocurrencies closed the week in green, with standout performers including:
- Four (FORM): +110% weekly
- PancakeSwap (CAKE): +48% weekly
Total value locked (TVL) in DeFi continues to reflect growing institutional interest.
FAQs
Q: What does the SEC’s dismissal mean for Ripple?
A: The case’s closure validates XRP’s non-security status, boosting regulatory clarity for blockchain projects.
Q: Will Solana ETFs challenge Ethereum’s dominance?
A: While SOL ETFs may narrow Ethereum’s market-cap lead, ETH’s ecosystem depth remains a key advantage.
Q: How did PumpSwap improve on Raydium?
A: By eliminating migration delays and fees, PumpSwap offers faster, cheaper trading for memecoins.
👉 Explore crypto’s latest regulatory shifts