Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse Calls Banks ‘Hypocritical’ For Blocking Crypto Access

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse called banks “hypocritical” for demanding crypto firms strictly comply with anti-money laundering rules and other safeguards while also blocking them from banking system infrastructure.

“You can’t say one and then combat the other,” he said, while speaking at DC Fintech Week. ”It’s hypocritical, and I think we all should call them out for being anti-competitive in that regard.”

Ripple has applied for a national trust charter and a Federal Reserve master account, which, if approved, would give it greater access to US banking infrastructure.

Garlinghouse’s remarks come after crypto-native companies including Ripple, Circle, Wise, and Erebor Bank filed for national bank or trust charters. 

A national trust charter would let the companies conduct limited fiduciary and custody activities under the oversight of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) without traditional deposit or lending functions. 

Ripple, through its subsidiary Standard Custody & Trust Company, has gone a step further and also applied for a Federal Reserve master account. If its application is approved, this would give the company direct access to the payments system.

Banking Policy Institute Says Crypto Firms Shouldn’t Get ‘Backdoor Access’

The Banking Policy Institute (BIP), a lobbying group representing big US banks, has raised concerns about granting non-banks and crypto firms access to national bank or trust charters. 

The BIP argues that crypto firms should not get “backdoor access” to the Federal Reserve payments system unless they meet full regulatory requirements. The group has also urged the OCC and Federal Reserve to move cautiously or even reject some applications. 

Garlinghouse said granting crypto firms such as Circle and Ripple master accounts will contribute to more regulatory oversight, more stability and risk mitigation. 

Banks Starting To Take Ripple More Seriously

Still, Garlinghouse said that financial institutions are starting to take Ripple, and other crypto firms, more seriously.

“I had meetings yesterday in New York City, where banks that would not have talked to us three years ago are now leaning in and saying, how could we partner around this?” he said.

That’s as Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin starts to gain traction following the signing of the GENIUS Act into law in July, providing regulatory clarity for stablecoin firms.

Since that act was signed by US President Trump, the stablecoin market cap has gone on to soar past $300 billion, data from DefiLlama shows. 

The market capitalization of Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin has soared more than 73% to $840.1 million since the GENIUS Act passed. 

Top stablecoins by market cap (Source: CoinMarketCap)

That ranks it as the eighth-largest stablecoin.