XRP's gains today follow growing speculation that Ripple might settle its lawsuit with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by the end of this week, particularly after XRP analyst JackTheRippler told his 232,700 followers that Ripple may have already paid the SEC $125 million in fines.

If the SEC has indeed accepted this penalty amount, it would indicate that the regulatory agency has decided not to appeal U.S. District Court Judge Analisa Torres' ruling, which significantly reduced the initial fine from $2 billion to $125 million.

Previously, the market was anticipating a possible appeal, as the SEC had been expected to contest the reduction in the fine. These fears contributed to XRP's declines following the Aug. 8 ruling; its down by over 14% since then.

However, as of now, there is no official confirmation or credible evidence to support these claims. Ripple's leadership, including CEO Brad Garlinghouse, has not made any statements verifying that a settlement has been reached or a fine has been paid. Additionally, legal experts and analysts closely following the case have not reported any verified developments indicating a settlement has occurred.

XRP's price rebound today occurred near the lower trendline of its prevailing ascending triangle pattern. The cryptocurrency has recovered sharply after testing the same level in recent weeks, namely its 50% gains in July, which, from a fractal analysis standpoint, increases the odds of another price recovery ahead.