Fiona Murray, the managing director of Ripple APAC, says the United States is dragging its feet on crypto. Despite recent hopes, the election will likely remain the same in the short term. However, she suggests there's still a chance for it to catch up.

Innovation Abroad

Speaking to Cointelegraph at Token2049 in Singapore, Murray said most of Ripple's business innovation was happening in Singapore rather than in the US. A lack of open-mindedness has driven many crypto founders to Asia and other countries to pursue fairer conditions.

She believes the APAC region has provided a stable environment with extensive 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.

Supportive Infrastructure

"You then have to have a supportive banking community, and beyond that, the infrastructure, 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 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 clarity across regulations and infrastructure is on the way for the US; it's just a matter of time.

A Potential Shift

"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 you could tokenize and custody, that would move the needle," she said.

Murray's comments come as the US SEC lays the groundwork for a potential appeal against Ripple Labs in its ongoing case with the firm. The regulator agreed to receive delayed payment of a $125 million fine.

Legal Battles

A federal judge ordered Ripple Labs to pay $125 million as a civil penalty on Aug. 7 for allegedly using its native token 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%.

Despite these hurdles, Murray remains optimistic about the US catching up in crypto, emphasizing the importance of regulatory clarity and robust infrastructure. The road ahead may be complex, but the potential rewards could be significant.