- Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced an agreement with SEC staff to dismiss the lawsuit, pending commission approval, allowing Ripple to reclaim most of a $125 million escrow fund, with $50 million going to the SEC.
- Garlinghouse praised the Trump administration’s pro-crypto stance, highlighting Ripple’s $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road and optimism for stablecoin and market structure legislation to foster domestic industry growth.
- He sees long-term value in crypto despite recent volatility, predicting a $200,000 Bitcoin price as the U.S. shifts from regulatory hostility to a supportive environment for innovation.
Ripple (XRP) CEO Brad Garlinghouse appeared on Fox Business to discuss the resolution of the company’s long-standing lawsuit with the SEC, marking a significant step forward for Ripple and the broader crypto industry. He revealed that Ripple reached an agreement with SEC staff to dismiss the case, pending a commission vote, allowing the company to reclaim most of a $125 million escrow fund, with the SEC receiving $50 million. Garlinghouse emphasized that this outcome underscores the overreach of the previous SEC leadership under Gary Gensler, contrasting it with the more pro-innovation stance of the current administration and new SEC leadership, including Paul Atkins’ recent confirmation. He praised the Trump administration for fulfilling its crypto-friendly promises, citing figures like David Sacks and Scott Bessent as key players in fostering sensible regulation to ensure the industry thrives domestically.
Garlinghouse highlighted two legislative priorities gaining traction: stablecoin regulation to clarify licensing and banking roles, and a market structure bill to provide broader clarity. He noted Ripple’s recent stablecoin launch under a New York trust license as a model for responsible regulation, urging federal clarity for major players like Circle and Tether. Despite recent crypto price volatility amid tariff concerns, with XRP down nearly 5% and Bitcoin 2% from breaking even since the tariff announcement, Garlinghouse remains optimistic about long-term trends. He pointed to XRP’s strong performance over the past 90 days and Ripple’s $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road, a prime broker, as evidence of confidence in the industry’s future, a move he said would have been unthinkable a year ago under the Biden administration’s hostile policies.
The acquisition, one of the largest in crypto history, aims to enable major institutions like BlackRock (BLK) to enter the market safely, reinforcing Ripple’s commitment to domestic growth. Garlinghouse reflected on the SEC lawsuit, initiated in December 2020, as a four-and-a-half-year ordeal that hindered Ripple’s ability to hire and innovate in the U.S., forcing more hiring abroad. With 1,100 employees now, he expressed a desire to invest in American talent, citing the lawsuit’s resolution as a win not just for Ripple but for the entire industry, preventing further offshoring. He also noted the significance of pending XRP ETF applications in the U.S., already active abroad, as a step toward safer, institutionalized crypto markets. On crypto’s role as a hedge, Garlinghouse acknowledged its mixed performance amid a falling dollar but argued its long-term value lies in growing utility and sensible regulation. When pressed for a Bitcoin price target, he suggested $200,000 as reasonable, citing the U.S. shift from regulatory headwinds to tailwinds as a transformative driver for the world’s largest economy and asset managers.
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