Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said the U.S. will not return to the anti-crypto stance seen under former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, declaring that the industry has entered a “point of no return.”
Speaking at the DC Fintech Week event, Garlinghouse stated, “The ship has sailed. The genie is out of the bottle in the U.S.,” emphasizing that the tough regulatory climate of the Gensler era is unlikely to return. He recalled that during Gensler’s tenure, the SEC sued several major crypto firms, including Ripple, which faced a $1.3 billion lawsuit that ended with a ruling that XRP sales to retail investors were not securities.
Garlinghouse also criticized traditional banks for blocking crypto firms’ access to the Federal Reserve’s “master account” system, calling it hypocritical. “Crypto firms comply with the same anti-money laundering standards as traditional finance; they deserve equal infrastructure access,” he said. Ripple applied for such access with the OCC in July.
Finally, the CEO stressed that the entire crypto industry needs regulatory clarity: “We achieved it through a $150 million lawsuit, but the whole sector deserves the same transparency.” He added that legislative progress in Washington remains slow but encouraging.
