US ‘far behind’ on crypto, election no quick fix: Ripple APAC boss

The United States is dragging its feet on crypto, and despite recent hopes, the election won’t likely change this in the short term, says Fiona Murray, the managing director of Ripple APAC. 

Though she suggests, there’s still a chance for it to catch up.

Speaking to Cointelegraph at Token2049 in Singapore, Murray said the bulk of the innovation in Ripple’s business was happening in Singapore and not in the US, saying that a “lack of open-mindedness” had driven many crypto founders to Asia and other countries in pursuit of fairer conditions. 

She believes the APAC region has provided a “stable environment” with a good deal of core infrastructure that enables healthy crypto development. 

“The banking partners in Singapore, like DBS, are really at the forefront, and they’ve been encouraged by the regulators to work with responsible Web3 companies. So it’s not just regulation,” she said, referring to DBS Bank, the largest bank in Southeast Asia.

“You then have to have a supportive banking community, and beyond that, the infrastructure and the rails, and the organization in general. So the US is so far behind right now, but it could catch up,” Murray added. 

Donald Trump may have become the first US president to buy a burger with Bitcoin, and Democrats could be warming up to crypto, but Murray holds doubts that the upcoming election will be an easy fix for the US industry.

“I think it’s more than the elections […] you’d have to enable all the banks to support Web3 communities and grow from there,” she said. 

Still, Murray believes that clarity across regulations and infrastructure is on the way for the US; it’s just a matter of time. 

Related: Ripple to add smart contracts to XRP Ledger

“Once that clarity is there and the infrastructure is there, if we were able to see the big banks move into this space, the number of assets that you could tokenize and custody, that would really move the needle,” she said. 

Murray’s comments come as the US SEC appears to be laying the groundwork for a potential appeal against Ripple Labs in its ongoing case with the firm — with the regulator agreeing to receive delayed payment of a $125 million fine. 

A federal judge ordered Ripple Labs to pay $125 million as a civil penalty on Aug. 7 for allegedly using its native token XRP (XRP) as an unregistered security to raise funds. 

Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse lauded the ruling as a “victory for Ripple, the industry, and the rule of law,” given that the court reduced the SEC’s proposed penalty by 94%. 

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