Brad Garlinghouse's Perspectives on Crypto Regulation and Ripple's Strategy

In 2025, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse shared his outlook on the future regulatory landscape of the cryptocurrency market and the company’s expansion plans in an interview with Fox Business. His comments reflect the executive’s stance at a critical moment for regulatory clarity in the United States.

Garlinghouse expressed optimism about the passage of legislation that would define the regulatory framework for digital assets, estimating an 80-90% chance that such measures would advance in Congress. The CEO emphasized that clear regulation would be essential to reduce legal uncertainty and facilitate the participation of financial institutions in the crypto sector.

Regulatory Debate: SEC, CFTC, and Stablecoins

According to Garlinghouse, the main legislation under discussion would establish clear jurisdictional boundaries between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The regulation would set specific criteria to determine whether a token is a security or a commodity, eliminating ambiguities that have characterized the North American crypto market.

However, the executive noted that the legislative process faces a significant obstacle: disagreement over the yields of stablecoins. Traditional banks oppose stablecoins offering yields, viewing it as a threat to deposits, while the crypto sector defends this feature as a driver of innovation. Garlinghouse advocated for compromise solutions that would allow legislative progress rather than seeking perfect regulation.

Expansion Strategy: Infrastructure Worth Trillions of Dollars

Ripple has made substantial investments in strengthening its infrastructure during this period. Garlinghouse highlighted several strategic acquisitions: the purchase of Metaco for $250 million to bolster custody services (used by institutions like Citi, SocGen, and Deutsche Börse), and the acquisition of Hidden Road for $1.25 billion in prime brokerage services.

In the stable payments space, Ripple launched RLUSD, a regulated dollar available on both XRPL and the Ethereum network. The CEO’s focus is on building global infrastructure worth trillions of dollars, rather than on specific token price fluctuations.

XRP in the Regulatory Context

Garlinghouse reiterated his stance on XRP, emphasizing that the token is definitely not a security. This statement addresses years of regulatory uncertainty regarding the asset’s classification. The CEO noted that XRP has been one of the best-performing crypto assets during this period, and that regulatory clarity will benefit the rest of the sector as 2026 progresses.

He envisions a more mature market where regulation and innovation develop in parallel, enabling Ripple and other platforms to solidify their institutional operations.