Ripple has kept 200 million XRP out of the 1 billion tokens unlocked from escrow, with the deadline to pay its civil penalty to the SEC drawing near.
September Escrow Unlock Transactions
On September 1, the escrow system released 1 billion XRP across three transactions. Whale Alert noted these transactions. In the first transaction, 500 million XRP, valued at $280 million, moved to Ripple wallet rw2…3wY at 02:46 UTC. Four minutes later, the system released 200 million XRP to wallet rDq…EsF and 300 million XRP to the same wallet.
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Shortly after, wallet rw2…3wY transferred 200 million XRP to wallet rBg…91m and sent the remaining 300 million XRP to wallet rDd…eCK. Wallet rDq…EsF also moved 100 million XRP to rDd…eCK and then transferred the remaining 400 million XRP to wallet rKD…2op. Wallets rDd…eCK and rKD…2op received 800 million XRP in total and returned this amount to escrow. Wallet rBg…91m retained the remaining 200 million XRP. Ripple may use these tokens for internal funding, liquidity, or other financial needs.
SEC Fine Deadline Looms
Ripple has four days left to pay its $125 million fine to the SEC. The fine, imposed by Judge Analisa Torres’ August 7 judgment, equals approximately 227 million XRP at the current price—27 million XRP more than Ripple retained this month.
Rumors suggest Ripple might have already paid the fine, but these remain unconfirmed.
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Ripple is not obligated to disclose payment details. Speculation from CryptoInsightUK suggests paying the fine would end the possibility of an appeal from either Ripple or the SEC.
However, influencer WrathofKahneman (WOK) refutes this claim, stating that the 60-day window for appeals remains open for both parties, whether or not Ripple pays the fine.
Ripple or the SEC can appeal any decision within this 60-day period. If Ripple appeals the fine and secures a reduction, the SEC must return the difference.
