This summary text is fully AI-generated and may therefore contain errors or be incomplete.
The cryptocurrency market experienced a surge on Monday, reaching a market cap of $1.62 trillion, the highest since April last year. Bitcoin reached a new 18-month high, while other cryptocurrencies also saw sudden increases in value. However, XRP’s gains were relatively subdued, and most of its gains were eroded by the time of writing. XRP’s lackluster performance has been attributed to its inability to attract institutional investors. While Bitcoin has attracted $1.3 billion in institutional flow this year, XRP has only brought in $13 million. This lack of institutional interest is likely due to Ripple’s ongoing legal struggles with the SEC. Despite being on the verge of winning its case and having regulatory clarity from the US justice system, investors continue to shy away from XRP, highlighting the damaging impact of the lawsuit by Jay Clayton. The latest development in the case involves former SEC director Bill Hinman, who is now caught up in the legal battle. It has been discovered that Hinman is set to earn millions of dollars in fees from the US offering of Weibo, a Chinese microblogging site. This has raised questions about potential conflicts of interest, as Hinman’s law firm is involved in offering legal guidance for the same offering. These accusations against Hinman and Clayton have led the XRP community to accuse the SEC of having an agenda against Ripple.