Crypto markets to ‘reach an all-time high’ this year, says Ripple CEO

Cryptocurrency markets will reach all-time highs this year, the CEO of one of the industry’s largest companies told CNBC.

“I’m very optimistic, and yes, I think we’ll see an all-time high for the record,” Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse told CNBC when asked about the cryptocurrency’s performance this year.

bitcoinThe world’s largest cryptocurrency reached an all-time high of around $126,000 in October and was trading around $89,000 as of Wednesday.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday, Garlinghouse said regulatory changes such as the groundbreaking GENIUS Act “are unlocking a lot of activity.”

The Securities and Exchange Commission dropped a four-year-old lawsuit against Ripple in March, for which the crypto company spent $150 million. The SEC accused Ripple of collecting $1.3 billion by selling the XRP token without registering it as a security. “Ripple stands alone as the company that has fought and won on fundamental legal questions,” Ripple Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty told CNBC in March following the conclusion of the lawsuit.

The GENIUS Act, passed in June, sets barriers for the industry, such as full reserve support and monthly audits.

Garlinghouse said it was a “major shift” that “major” financial institutions were showing interest in crypto. “I don’t think this is priced in the crypto market right now as much as I would expect,” he said.

XRPRipple’s payment token was a breakthrough in this month’s crypto rally. It was trading at around $1.90 on Wednesday.

Standard Chartered analysts said that XRP could reach $8 in 2026 and $12.50 in 2028. however, Garlinghouse declined to comment on this matter.

“We are a very competent party to what is happening in the XRP ecosystem,” he said. “In another five or 10 years, you’ll see a very positive momentum continuing,” Garlinghouse said.

When asked what the big use cases for digital assets will be this year, Garlinghouse said he expects Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, to re-enter the US market.

Garlinghouse said the GENIUS Act would help stablecoins “scale in a massive way” and that cryptocurrency could help operations like payroll become more efficient.

He said cryptocurrencies are “turning into a really nice opportunity for growth over the next 10 years.”

Garlinghouse was optimistic about the Openness Act, a framework for regulating cryptocurrencies, saying the U.S. “It’s going to get done. We’re as close as we’ve ever been.”

— CNBC’s Ari Levy, Arjun Kharpal and MacKenzie Sigalos contributed to this report.