Ripple CEO Talks XRP’s Future: US Strategic Reserve, IPO And Spot ETFs

In an interview with Bloomberg, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse discussed the conclusion of Ripple’s lawsuit with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as well as the company’s strategic outlook. Garlinghouse touched on everything from a potential IPO to the possibility of XRP playing a role in the new US Crypto Stockpile.

Ripple Vs. SEC Case Conclusion

Garlinghouse described the legal battle with the SEC, originally launched in December 2020, as having effectively ended. According to him, the SEC has agreed to drop its appeal against the earlier court decision ruling that “XRP in and of itself was not a security.”

“We won on the key parts of the case in the summer of ’23. Judge Torres made a ruling that XRP in and of itself was not a security. The SEC filed an appeal about eight months ago, and what they’ve now agreed is that they’re going to drop that appeal.”

Although Ripple still has a cross-appeal in place, Garlinghouse indicated that, going forward, the company has far more control over its legal strategy. He noted that what remains under discussion is whether Ripple continues to pursue the return of a significant escrowed amount—$125 million—which relates to a penalty the court had imposed for sales of XRP to certain institutional investors: “There was a $125 million fine that’s sitting in escrow. We wouldn’t mind having that back. That’s on the table.”

Garlinghouse stressed that Ripple’s stance stems from the fact that “no investors lost any money” in connection with the disputed XRP sales. He criticized former SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s approach to crypto oversight, calling it “a power grab” meant to expand the SEC’s reach.

US Crypto Stockpile And Spot XRP ETFs

Garlinghouse also indicated that XRP could feature in a new federal initiative. While acknowledging that the Trump administration’s executive order, establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a separate Crypto Stockpile, did not explicitly name XRP, the Ripple chief believes XRP is a natural fit.

“My understanding is there’s going to be a Bitcoin strategic reserve. There’ll be a crypto stockpile representing other cryptos, and I would expect that will include XRP. […] My understanding is that the stockpile would be represented by seized other cryptos other than Bitcoin. That then will be in that stockpile. So to the extent that various law enforcement agencies have seized cryptos, which would include XRP, that those would go into the stockpile in addition to the Bitcoin strategic reserve,” Garlinghouse remarked.

Garlinghouse also sounded optimistic about the prospects for spot XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Multiple proposals are on the SEC’s desk from well-known asset managers: “There are 11 different filings pending with the SEC to launch ETFs, from everybody from Bitwise to Franklin Templeton and a whole bunch of people in between. I think those will be live in the second half of this year.”

Moreover, he highlighted that even though some crypto-linked products have seen outflows, inflows to XRP-based products continue. This, he said, reflects the “false negative pressure” that dogged XRP during the SEC case.

Speculation about Ripple going public has circled for years. With regulatory clarity improving, Garlinghouse acknowledged the possibility of an initial public offering (IPO), though he made it clear that this is not the company’s top priority. “It isn’t a huge priority. Most companies go public because raising capital is high on their radar. We have been in a very fortunate position to be able to grow the business organically.”

Instead, he pointed to acquisitions as a more immediate focus for Ripple. Garlinghouse sees industry-wide “consolidation” this year, especially as the US crypto market transitions from regulatory headwinds to potential tailwinds: “We will look at other things that are blockchain infrastructure companies. I think there will be consolidation this year. There’s a lot of excitement about some of the changes, and we will lean into that for sure.”

Turning to stablecoins—an area gaining bipartisan support in Washington—Garlinghouse said Ripple is placing significant weight on its own stablecoin, RLUSD, which launched late last year. The stablecoin currently sits around $230 billion in total stablecoin supply, but many analysts predict it could grow tenfold over the next five years.

“Ripple launched its own stablecoin at the end of last year. That’s already ahead of our own internal forecasts… The goal is by the end of the year for RLUSD […] to be one of the top five in the market.”

He noted increased activity in stablecoin use cases, such as Robinhood’s movement toward 24-hour trading. With stablecoin legislation already advancing through Congress, Garlinghouse expects the entire market to “grow dramatically this year.”

At press time, XRP traded at $2.44.