Ripple’s long-serving Chief Technology Officer, announced on Tuesday that he will be stepping down from his executive role at the end of the year. Schwartz, who was instrumental in coding the XRP Ledger, is transitioning to a seat on the company’s Board of Directors and will take on the title of CTO Emeritus, ensuring his continued influence at the blockchain payments firm.
Schwartz shared the news in a post on X, citing a desire to dedicate more time to his family and personal hobbies.
“But be warned, I’m not going away from the XRP community. You haven’t seen the last of me (now, or ever),” he wrote.
While stepping away from the daily operations, Schwartz made it clear his involvement with the underlying technology will continue. He mentioned that in recent months he has been running his own XRPL node, publishing data, and exploring new use cases for XRP beyond Ripple’s core payments business.
“I’ll still be in and out of the Ripple office as CTO Emeritus, and as my last task at Ripple, Chris [Larsen, Executive Chairman] asked me to join Ripple’s Board of Directors to continue supporting the company’s mission and long-term vision…and I accept,” he stated.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse praised Schwartz in his own post, calling him a “true OG in crypto with the conviction and vision to see what others couldn’t.” Garlinghouse expressed relief that Schwartz would remain close as part of the board.
