A judge will allow Ripple to question a former SEC director about how to define cryptocurrencies, report says

• A judge has allowed crypto company Ripple to question former SEC director William Hinman, Bloomberg reported.
• The former SEC director gave a June 2018 speech that argued why bitcoin and ether were not securities.
• Ripple hopes the SEC will now not classify XRP as a security to resolve the lawsuit over the token.

A judge has allowed Ripple, a crypto company, to request an old speech from a former director of the Securities and Exchange Commission as part of its case to show its XRP digital token should not be treated as a security, according to a Bloomberg report.

On Thursday, over a phone call, New York District Court judge Sarah Netburn agreed to allow Ripple to question former SEC director William Hinman.

"While we can't go into the details, we are pleased with the Court's thoughtful approach in allowing the deposition of former SEC Director Bill Hinman," a Ripple spokesperson told Insider in an emailed statement.

Late last year, the SEC sued Ripple on the grounds that its XRP token should be treated as security, much the way stocks are, and that not doing so meant the company had misinformed investors. Ripple has always strenuously denied the claims.

The decision to subpoena Hinman's speech from June 2018 was down to the fact that, at the time, he argued bitcoin and ethereum's ether token were not securities.

"[This case] involves significant policy decisions in our markets, the amount in controversy is substantial and the public's interest in this case is significant," Bloomberg reported Netburn as saying.

Ripples XRP token is the 6th largest cryptocurrency. It was last down 2.61% in the last 24 hours to around $0.59 on Friday.