Ripple Swell 2025 Kicks Off in New York, Uniting 60+ Industry Leaders and Policymakers

Ripple's annual Swell conference, an invite-only event focusing on institutional adoption of digital assets, commenced today in New York City, running through November 5th. Announced via a tweet by CoinDesk, the event brings together influential figures from major financial and blockchain entities, including Kraken, Chainalysis, and Citi, to discuss the future of digital finance. The conference, held at Convene Hudson Yards, marks its first time in the global financial hub of New York.

The two-day gathering is set to host over 600 attendees from 40 countries and features more than 60 speakers, highlighting a significant intersection of cryptocurrency innovation with U.S. policy and traditional finance. This year's agenda underscores the growing importance of blockchain in regulated financial systems, with sessions designed to drive "real business outcomes," as stated in the CoinDesk tweet. A welcome reception was held yesterday, November 3rd, preceding the main programming.

Prominent speakers include Patrick Witt, Executive Director of the White House's Digital Assets Council, Nasdaq Chair and CEO Adena Friedman, and BlackRock Director of Digital Assets Maxwell Stein. Executives from JPMorgan Chase, BNY Mellon, Fidelity, and Franklin Templeton are also slated to speak, covering topics such as tokenization, market structure, regulation, payments, custody, and stablecoins. Discussions will also address "US Regulatory Leadership in Crypto" and the impact of tokenized financial assets on capital markets.

Ripple's CEO Brad Garlinghouse and President Monica Long are leading discussions, emphasizing the XRP Ledger's (XRPL) alignment with ISO 20022 standards for tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs) and facilitating cross-border payments. Maxwell Stein's participation from BlackRock has fueled speculation within the XRP community regarding the firm's stance on a potential XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF), though no direct announcements on this topic are confirmed for the event. Historically, Swell events have sometimes coincided with short-term XRP price surges, though recent market trends show a downtrend for XRP.

The conference aims to foster connections and exchange bold ideas among industry leaders, covering critical areas like stablecoin settlements on XRPL and the broader implications of digital assets for institutional liquidity and treasury management. Ripple's focus remains on driving real-world utility and institutional innovation within the growing blockchain ecosystem.