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Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse Honored as 2026 Business Leader of the Year

From legal battles to billion-dollar deals, Garlinghouse's vision propelled Ripple into fintech's elite. Now, Harvard crowns his transformative leadership.

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2 min read
The image shows a group of people standing next to each other in front of a screen, smiling and...
The image shows a group of people standing next to each other in front of a screen, smiling and holding certificates in their hands. On the right side of the image there is a table covered with a black cloth, and in the background there is an object on the wall. At the top of the roof there are lights, and the people in the image are the winners of the 2018 International Business Awards.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse Honored as 2026 Business Leader of the Year

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has been named the 2026 Business Leader of the Year by the Harvard Business School Association of Northern California.

Award Presentation and Previous Recipients

The award was presented during a dinner at the Julia Morgan Ballroom in San Francisco. The Harvard Business School Association of Northern California has given the award since 1969. Past recipients include Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, former Cisco CEO John Chambers, and Intel co-founder Gordon Moore.

Harvard's Praise for Garlinghouse

Harvard praised Garlinghouse for scaling Ripple while keeping focus on the company's long-term business vision. Ripple expanded through major acquisitions, global licenses, and XRP ETF momentum after its SEC battle.

Garlinghouse's Leadership and Path at Ripple

Harvard Business School Professor David B. Yoffie praised Garlinghouse's leadership at Ripple. He pointed to the CEO's work in building the company while keeping its core business direction in place.

Garlinghouse joined Ripple in April 2015 as chief operating officer after earlier executive roles at AOL and Yahoo. He later became CEO in 2016 after co-founder Chris Larsen brought him into the company.

Ripple's Expansion

Ripple has continued to grow after its legal fight with the SEC. Garlinghouse has also become a leading voice in calls for clearer crypto rules in the United States.

Over the past year, Ripple completed large acquisitions, including GTreasury for $1 billion and Hidden Road for $1.25 billion. The company later rebranded Hidden Road as Ripple Prime, a clearing platform focused on institutional finance.

Ripple also secured key licenses in global markets, including an Electronic Money Institution license in the United Kingdom. The company has also benefited from growing interest in XRP products after XRP spot ETFs launched last year.

The Harvard award adds another public milestone for Garlinghouse as Ripple expands its role in crypto payments, custody, stablecoins, and institutional markets.

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