Chris Giancarlo, former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), predicted that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would drop the case against Ripple during a recent appearance on Fox Business. 

"I would bet they would," Giancarlo said in response to a question from Fox Business reporter Charles Gasparino. 

As reported by U.Today, the SEC filed its notice of appeal in the case last month. This was followed by Ripple's own cross-appeal. 

Since Wall Street's next top cop is widely expected to adopt a crypto-friendly stance, it appears to be likely that the SEC is not going to continue its long-lasting legal battle with Ripple. 

Stuart Alderoty, Ripple's top layer, recently argued that the next head of the SEC should drop all non-fraud cryptocurrency cases on Day 1.  

SEC boss Gary Gensler has now confirmed that he will part ways with the agency in January. This injected renewed optimism into the cryptocurrency, which has been at loggerheads with the new SEC boss. 

Apart from Ripple, the SEC has also targeted such crypto juggernauts as Coinbase and Binance. 

According to prediction market Kalshi, former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins now has a 60% chance of becoming the next head of the SEC. Former Binance US CEO Brian Brooks comes in a distant second place with 20%. 

Robinhood CLO Dan Gallagher, the previous favorite to end up at the helm of the SEC, recently said that he was not seeking the job. 

As reported by U.Today, Giancarlo himself confirmed that he was not part of the race to replace Gensler despite some earlier rumors.