Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse Would 'Certainly Welcome' Backing An XRP ETF

Brad Garlinghouse, the CEO of Ripple, on Tuesday discussed the potential for an XRP XRP/USD focused exchange-traded fund (ETF).

What Happened: During a Bloomberg interview,  Garlinghouse was questioned about Ripple’s stance on backing an XRP ETF, to which he said, “We would certainly welcome it.”

Garlinghouse was also asked about Ripple’s conversations with major asset managers, such as BlackRock, about an ETF issuance, to which he replied, “I'm not going to comment on that. I know BlackRock has said some things publicly. You know, we think it makes sense for the XRP community overall… Ripple obviously is a very important stakeholder in the XRP ecosystem, but we're not the only player.”

Speculation arose in November 2023 when a filing hinted at BlackRock’s interest in an XRP ETF, but the firm discredited the document, labeling it fraudulent. Currently, the United States has no XRP ETFs. 

Looking ahead, Garlinghouse anticipates a broader range of cryptocurrency ETFs, he said, “I think it only makes sense there will be other ETFs too. It's a little like, you know, the earliest days of the stock market. You don't really want exposure to one stock or one company. You want to typically think about diversifying risk.”

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Why It Matters: Last month, Garlinghouse criticized Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Garlinghouse told CNBC on Jan. 16 that Gensler's approach is not in "the best interest of the citizenry".

At the same panel, he showed skepticism towards the utility of Dogecoin DOGE/USD. He said, "I don't get it," concerning "unregulated cryptocurrencies" and identified Elon Musk as the "central actor" in Dogecoin's marketplace. Garlinghouse stated he fails to "see the use and the purpose" of the meme coin.

Price Action: At the time of writing, XRP was trading at $0.54, down 3.60% over the past 24 hours, as reported by Benzinga Pro. 

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