August 10th, Kirit Bhatia, the head of international business development at Ripple, stated that Ripple is collaborating with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) to pilot a central bank digital currency (CBDC) program. The program aims to tokenize real-world assets (RWA) using the Ripple CBDC platform supported by XRP Ledger (XRPL) technology.

Ripple has now become an official member of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) "Payment, clearing and settlement in cross-border transactions and expanding interoperability". The joining took place on August 9th and is part of a wider initiative by the "Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures" of the BIS.

Lawyer John Deaton, who supports XRP, stated on Twitter that he was excited about XRP being removed from Coingecko's latest SEC securities list. He also stated that XRP is no longer on the SEC list today. Deaton compared this development to a situation three years ago when the SEC claimed that Ripple sold over 14.6 billion units of digital assets that were considered "securities".

XRPcafe, an NFT marketplace integrated with Ripple's XRP Ledger, has announced five new amendments to enhance the functionality of NFTs. The amendments will be implemented on August 21, 2023, and have been approved by 80% of the Unique Node List voters. <br>

Court documents released on Wednesday show that the Ripple vs SEC lawsuit is expected to be heard in the second quarter of 2024 in the Southern District of New York. Both parties have two weeks to submit their proposed deadlines to the court. The judge also added that Ripple and the SEC must file all pre-trial motions, documentary evidence, and motions to exclude jury evidence by December 4, 2023. <br>

BIS has announced that Ripple is now an official member of its cross-border payments interoperability and extension taskforce, which is part of the BIS Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures. <br>

Prosecutors in the Terra-Luna crash trial are using the Ripple and XRP legal battle as evidence to support their case. They have obtained a translated Ripple-related judgment from a US court which confirms that XRP was deemed a security when sold to institutional investors. This challenges the assertion that Luna Coin cannot be considered a security under Korean law. Prosecutors also intend to submit a ruling from a federal court in New York which categorizes virtual currencies as securities, regardless of their method of sale. The distinction between Ripple/XRP and Luna Coin lies in their profit-sharing mechanisms, with Luna Coin's commitment to share profits potentially classifying it as a security.

Hugo Philion, CEO of Flare Network, has stated that Ripple's recovery will be slow due to its ongoing legal issues. Ripple has been hindered by regulatory uncertainty since late 2020, causing it to fall behind by approximately 2.5 years. Stablecoin providers have made significant progress in the market traditionally led by Ripple, but Philion believes Ripple could still succeed in areas poorly served by traditional finance. However, progress may be slow due to skepticism within traditional finance regarding cryptocurrencies, and developing new use cases for XRP will take time to yield results.

Coinbase has used the recent Ripple Labs case to argue against the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) case against them. The crypto exchange claims that the SEC's attempt to classify a simple asset sale as a security is an unprecedented stretch, and that the judge's recent decision with Ripple supports their argument. Coinbase also cited the major questions doctrine, which requires clear congressional authorization for an agency to decide on an issue of major national significance, as applying to their case against the SEC. The SEC and Ripple have been in a legal fight since 2020, when the agency accused Ripple of raising $1.3 billion through the sale of XRP, which it says is an unregistered security.

Charles Hoskinson, the creator of Cardano and former co-founder of Ethereum, has denied any involvement in the alleged conspiracy against XRP. The denial came after a follower presented him with emails reportedly sent by a prominent SEC functionary discussing Ethereum's classification as a security. Hoskinson clarified that the emails were from 2018 and beyond, long after he had left Ethereum in 2014 due to a difference in vision with co-founder Vitalik Buterin. Hoskinson emphasized that he had no involvement in the controversy surrounding the emails.

Terraform Labs' collapse caused regulators in South Korea and the USA to investigate. The legal team in the US attempted to use Ripple's recent success against the SEC to their advantage, but Judge Jed Rakoff ruled that tokens minted on the Terraform Blockchain qualify as securities under the Howey test. Judge Rakoff also disregarded legal precedent and denied Terraform Labs' attempt to dismiss the court case filed by the SEC against them. This decision may have consequences for Ripple Labs' court case, potentially prolonging their legal battle.

Ripple has hired former SDNY attorney Douglas Samuel Zolkind to join their legal team in the ongoing lawsuit against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Zolkind's expertise in white collar criminal defense and government investigations is expected to strengthen Ripple's position in the case.

Ripple's Chief Legal Officer, Stuart Alderoty, has clarified that the recent ruling in the TerraForm Labs case does not change the fact that XRP is not a security. The confusion arose after US District Judge Jed Rakoff rejected TerraForm Labs' approach to use Judge Torres' decision in the Ripple case to dismiss the SEC's lawsuit against the company and its founder, Do Kwon. Judge Rakoff's ruling has caused confusion in the market, prompting Alderoty to provide clarity. Alderoty invited other legal experts to provide an analysis of Judge Rakoff's comment on the Ripple ruling.

The writer's opinion is presented and it is not financial advice. XRP's value has remained above $0.65 after a legal win against the US SEC, leading to a sharp upswing. However, XRP has retraced to the 50% Fib level due to the weakening of Bitcoin. The 50% Fib level has been a crucial rescue for bulls during the past two price pullbacks, and if the trend continues, bulls could see respite near this level.

Ripple's XRP has regained its position as the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, displacing Binance's BNB coin. This was due to a surge in trading volume following a ruling that declared Ripple's sale of XRP tokens in 2020 did not qualify as the sale of an "unregistered security." However, XRP's on-chain assessment has revealed a decline in daily active addresses and new demand since mid-July, leading to a shortfall in profits.&nbsp;

A debate has arisen among prominent figures in the cryptocurrency world regarding the tax implications of using XRP for cross-currency payments. The discussion centers around XRPL pathfinding and its potential effects on taxable events. Fredo Ayala, an accounting and finance consultant, initiated the conversation and stated that if an XRP settlement occurs within a single ledger without price fluctuations, taxable implications would apply only to the customer. However, if price shifts occur during the pathfinding process, both increases and decreases in taxable events may arise. Ripple's CTO, David Schwartz, emphasized that any profit or gain generated during the process should be considered taxable income for the party responsible.

Founder of BlackSwanCapitalist, Versan Aljarrah, has stated that the demand for XRP's utility is surpassing its available supply, making a higher price necessary to maintain liquidity. Aljarrah believes that the affordable price of XRP cannot endure as global demand for the digital asset escalates. He sees the projected XRP surge as a wake-up call to skeptics who have yet to grasp this economic reality. Shannon Thorp, a Treasury Management team member at Wells Fargo, also argues that XRP's price cannot remain low due to retail investors cashing out and the involvement of top institutions and businesses investing in XRP. XRP currently trades at $0.7088 with a circulating supply of over 52 billion.

Binance.US tweeted that ARB and XRP have been added to the flash swap function with no transaction fees.

Blockchain technology company Ripple is actively engaged in discussions with over 30 countries regarding the adoption of its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) platform, according to James Wallis, Ripple's Vice President of Central Bank Engagements and CBDCs. The company has already announced partnerships with five countries, with an additional five being pursued discreetly. In addition, Ripple is in discussions with more than 20 other countries considering adoption of its CBDC platform, with the option for a private or public implementation of XRP.&nbsp;

Despite a general decline in prices, XRP's liquidity has remained stable. Technical indicators suggest a bearish trend and short positions have surpassed longs. However, the volume-to-open interest ratio is still above average, indicating sustained speculative interest.&nbsp;