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Ripple Chief Technology Officer (CTO) David Schwartz identifies Chris Larsen as the most important person in the company’s history.
The prominent developer and current CTO of the crypto payments behemoth made this known during a recent Ask Me Anything (AMA) session he hosted on X.
Schwartz Identifies Most Important Person in Ripple
During the AMA session, Schwartz pointed out that he was under the influence of pain medication following a dental tooth procedure. Despite his altered state, Schwartz urged XRP enthusiasts to ask him anything, emphasizing his willingness to engage them in conversation.
Consequently, an XRP community member asked him to identify the most prominent figure in Ripple’s history from five choices. The list contains both past and present Ripple executives, such as Schwartz (current CTO), Jed McCaleb (Co-founder and former CTO), Chris Larsen (Co-founder and Chairman), Brad Garlinghouse (CEO), or any other exec not included in the list.
Interestingly, Schwartz selected Larsen as the most important person in Ripple’s history.
“I think Chris,” he remarked.
Schwartz reflected on Larsen’s belief and dedication to Ripple’s vision, particularly during a challenging stage. Notably, he admitted that Larsen believed in Ripple’s potential even before he fully embraced it.
I think Chris. He really believed in, and committed to, the idea at a stage where that was hard to do and well before I did.
— David "JoelKatz" Schwartz (@JoelKatz) May 16, 2024
Larsen’s Contributions to Ripple’s Success
Larsen, alongside McCaleb, founded Ripple in 2012. Ripple, which started as a little company filled with hopes and dreams, has grown into a top crypto behemoth, providing institutional-grade payment solutions to prominent financial institutions globally.
The Ripple chairman played a pivotal role during the company’s formative years, serving as CEO until 2016, when Garlinghouse assumed the position.
It bears mentioning that Larsen was instrumental in Garlinghouse’s appointment as CEO. Earlier this month, Garlinghouse revealed that Larsen convinced him to decline an opportunity to work with ride-sharing giant Uber in favor of Ripple.
Additionally, Larsen also brought in Schwartz to Ripple’s board due to his loyalty. For context, Schwartz is one of the brains behind XRP’s underlying technology, XRP Ledger (XRPL). Since becoming CTO, Schwartz has spearheaded several development activities on XRPL and other Ripple-affiliated projects.
SEC Lawsuit Against Larsen
Meanwhile, the SEC did not spare Larsen in its legal tussle with Ripple. Recall that the SEC charged him and Garlinghouse with aiding and abetting Ripple in selling XRP as an unregistered security.
Surprisingly, the regulatory agency dropped the charges against the Ripple execs in 2023 while continuing the case against the company.
In the meantime, the lawsuit is edging close to an end as the parties await the court’s decision on Ripple’s motion to exclude Andrea Fox’s declaration and the final judgment.