Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, and HSBC Classify XRP as Digital Currency

• Top financial institutions are backing Ripple after classifying its token as a “digital token.”
• Goldman Sachs identified Ripple as an “opportunity in payments,” alongside Circle, and Coinbase.

As the case between Ripple and the SEC rages on, a number of top financial institutions seem to be backing the San Francisco-based financial technology company. In a new report, Ripple was identified as an “opportunity in payments,” alongside Circle, a peer-to-peer payment technology, and Coinbaseby Goldman Sachs.

JUST IN: #XRP Classified as "Digital Currency" by Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo and HSBC

— DustyBC Crypto (@TheDustyBC) August 16, 2022

HSBC on DLT technology, in which it mentioned Ripple, also made some encouraging points, stating:

DLT can streamline end-to-end value transfers, reducing costs, operational risks, and settlement periods. For example, Ripple’s XRP ledger provides real-time cross-border settlements, using tokens that represent central bank currencies.

Ripple vs SEC

Such comments have been encouraging with XRP investors believing that they could be critical in Ripple’s defense. Though Ripple has garnered massive support and has recorded a couple of wins in its lawsuit, the SEC has continued to pursue the case. Most recently, Ripple has recorded a small victory after Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn granted Ripple permission to subpoena video hosting platforms. This will authenticate the videos of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission top officials making speeches about XRP.

The SEC is particularly interested in the 2018 speech of former SEC official William Hinman, who stated that Ethereum was a security. This could either to the SEC investigating Ethereum, which they have not ruled out, or dropping the case against Ripple.

Some analysts who have been following the case closely believe that it will end with a settlement encouraged by the SEC. As Crypto-newsmedia reported, there have been suggestions that the SEC is already investigating cryptocurrency exchanges in the U.S. Analysts suggest that once the Ripple case is concluded, the watchdog agency will fully focus on these exchanges.