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Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said there has been a major shift in how traditional finance views the cryptocurrency industry, pointing to growing corporate interest in stablecoins and digital-asset technology.
Garlinghouse recalled an earlier era when influential figures in traditional finance dismissed digital assets as toxic speculation. He referenced Warren Buffett’s “rat poison” remark during the 2018 Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholder meeting, which came just months after Bitcoin fell from its initial mainstream peak of nearly $20,000.
Garlinghouse said Fortune 500 chief executives and boards are increasingly asking their CFOs about stablecoin integration. He cited corporate activity around stablecoin payments, noting that $3 trillion was “orchestrated” in stablecoin payments last year.
He described the moment as a turning point for crypto adoption, saying, “This is the ChatGPT moment of crypto,” and adding that stablecoins are being viewed as an entry point into other blockchain-based and crypto solutions.
While acknowledging potential use cases, Garlinghouse warned against hype around tokenization. He said tokenization must improve efficiency to be valuable, and he questioned some applications he has seen, describing the risk of technology being “in search of a problem.”
He said, “Tokenization has very valuable applications, and there are some examples that I see, I don't quite get it.”
Garlinghouse also praised a joint announcement by the SEC and CFTC recognizing 16 digital assets as commodities, calling it a “massive step forward.”
At the same time, he criticized the regulatory approach of the past four years under former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, characterizing it as “lawfare.” He said, “Instead of engaging in thoughtful rulemaking, it was lawfare. Let's attack the companies and drive them offshore.”
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