XRP News Today: SEC Delays ETF Reviews as Legal Clouds Linger; BTC at $106k

XRP-Spot ETFs: SEC Delays Reviews

SEC delays rattle XRP-ETF hopes on Tuesday, May 20, as the focus shifted to intermediate deadlines for XRP-spot ETFs. The SEC delayed its review of the Grayscale XRP Trust conversion to an ETF, raising concerns about the prospect of an XRP-spot ETF market.

Bloomberg Intelligence Analyst James Seyffart downplayed the delay, stating:

“The SEC *typically* takes the full time to respond to a 19b-4 filing. Almost all of these filings have final due dates in October. Early decisions would be the action that’s out of the norm. No matter how ‘Crypto-friendly’ this SEC is. There’s no conspiracy here.”

However, the May 15 court ruling in the SEC vs. Ripple case sank expectations of the SEC reviewing XRP-spot ETF applications before their final October deadlines. Judge Analisa Torres rejected an SEC request for an indicative settlement ruling to lift the injunction on XRP institutional sales and to reduce the $125 million penalty.

If Judge Torres rejects a second filing, Ripple may pursue its cross-appeal, forcing the SEC to progress its appeal against the Programmatic Sales of XRP ruling. An appeal withdrawal may be crucial for an XRP-spot ETF approval.

21Shares XRP ETF, Bitwise XRP ETF, Canary Funds, and WisdomTree also have intermediate deadlines this week. However, Seyffart expects the SEC to delay these reviews, stating:

“Delays on spot crypto ETFs are expected. A bunch of XRP ETPs have dates in next few days. If we’re gonna see early approvals from the SEC on any of these assets — i wouldn’t expect to see them until late June or early July at absolute earliest. More likely to be in early 4Q.”

XRP Price Outlook: Focus on Legal Developments

XRP declined 1% on Tuesday, May 20, following Monday’s 2.01% and closed at $2.3566. The token underperformed the broader market, which rose 0.82%, taking the total crypto market cap to $3.31 trillion.

XRP’s near-term price trajectory depends on US crypto legislation, upcoming settlement court filings, court rulings, and XRP-spot ETF market-related news.

Technical support sits at $2.3. A break above the May 12 high of $2.6553 could signal a move toward $3.00, with the potential to reach the record high of $3.5505.

For a deeper dive, see our full XRP forecast here.

Bitcoin Gains as GENIUS Act Makes Progress

While XRP faced selling pressure, Bitcoin (BTC) trended higher on May 20 as investors considered the GENIUS Act vote on Capitol Hill. The Senate passed the GENIUS Act on May 19, with 16 Democrats reportedly changing their vote to support the bill. The passing of the GENIUS Act into law could be crucial for other crypto-related legislation to progress.

Crypto Amicus Curiae attorney John E. Deaton recently remarked:

“If Congress can’t get the GENIUS Act passed, we won’t see a Market Structure’s Bill, which means we won’t see any long-lasting reform until 2029, depending on how the Presidential election goes.”

Significantly, passing the GENIUS Act into law could pave the way for a vote on the Bitcoin Act. Senator Cynthia Lummis recently reintroduced the Bitcoin Act, proposing the US acquire one million BTC over five years with a 20-year statutory hold. If passed, BTC could climb to new highs on tighter supply.

BTC-Spot ETF Inflows Boost Demand

Meanwhile, the US BTC-spot ETF market contributed to the session’s gains, with total net inflows of $667.4 million on May 19. The US BTC-spot ETF market may extend its inflow streak to five sessions on May 20, underscoring positive investor sentiment.

According to Farside Investors, key flow trends for May 20 included:

• Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) saw net inflows of $23.3 million.
• ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) reported net inflows of $6.4 million.
• Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust (BTC) registered net inflows of $6.2 million.
• Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) had net inflows of $5.8 million.

Excluding BlackRock’s (BLK) pending iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) data, the US BTC-spot ETF market saw total inflows of $41.7 million.

Market intelligence platform Santiment remarked on recent flow trends, stating:

“Bitcoin ETFs are seeing massive inflows, a trend that began in mid-April. Over the past 5 weeks, there has been a net inflow of $6.63B across BTC ETFs. This is historically a bullish sign for future price movement.”

BTC Price Outlook: Monitor Capitol Hill and ETF Trends

BTC gained 1.21% on May 20, reversing Monday’s 0.85% loss to a record high close at $106,856.

BTC’s short-term trajectory hinges on Capitol Hill developments, global trade conditions, macro data, and ETF inflows.

Potential scenarios:

• Bearish Scenario: Renewed trade tensions, legislation deadlock, US recession fears, and ETF outflows. Bearish sentiment could send BTC below $100,000.
• Bullish Scenario: Easing trade tensions, upbeat US economic data, GENIUS Act progress, and ETF inflows. Bullish sentiment could drive BTC above the record high of $109,312.

What to Watch

Investors should closely watch filings in the Ripple case, legislative developments, and macroeconomic indicators. These will likely dictate price trends and determine whether XRP and BTC can move higher.

Read analysts’ insights on what could drive cryptocurrencies to new highs.