Ripple CTO David “JoelKatz” Schwartz to Step Down by Year’s End, but Will Remain on Board

In a surprise move that signals a turning of the guard, David “JoelKatz” Schwartz — the longtime CTO and technical architect behind XRP’s ledger — announced he will step down from his executive role at Ripple by the end of 2025. Yet, his exit from day‑to‑day operations comes with strings attached: he’s not leaving entirely, and his continuing presence suggests this is less an abdication than a recalibration.

A Quiet Separation, Not a Break

Schwartz’s announcement, made via a post on X (formerly Twitter), explained that after more than 13 years with Ripple, he plans to shift focus toward family, personal projects, and rediscovering passions which fell by the wayside during his intense involvement in cryptocurrency development.

Despite relinquishing the CTO title, Schwartz will take on the role of CTO Emeritus and join Ripple’s board of directors. In those capacities, he intends to remain connected to the firm and its mission — providing guidance, advising on technical direction, and acting as a bridge to the XRP community.

According to Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, this change was mutually agreed upon, and he welcomed Schwartz’s continuing influence: “regular check‑ins will continue,” Garlinghouse wrote in his own post.

The Context: Litigation Resolved, Transition Begins

Schwartz’s decision comes at a pivotal moment for Ripple. The company has just closed the book on its long-standing legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which culminated in a settlement in August 2025 involving alleged unregistered sales of XRP. That settlement marked a milestone in regulatory clarity and freed Ripple from years of uncertainty and litigation overhead.

In that light, Schwartz’s shift may represent both personal timing and organizational recalibration. With the legal clouds lifting, Ripple enters a new phase — one that is less reactive and more future‑oriented. Schwartz’s move to a less hands‑on role aligns with the company’s need to reorganize for growth beyond court constraints.

Another factor: Schwartz’s continued involvement in the XRP Ledger ecosystem beyond Ripple’s core business. In recent months, he’s been running an XRPL node, publishing data, exploring novel use cases, dialoguing with developer communities, and experimenting beyond Ripple’s payment infrastructure focus. These activities may hint at the direction he hopes to carve out for himself post‑CTO.

What This Means for Ripple — and the XRP Ecosystem

Technical Continuity vs. Fresh Leadership
By remaining as a board member and CTO Emeritus, Schwartz helps preserve institutional memory and technical continuity during the transition. His presence offers reassurance that the architecture he helped build won’t suddenly veer off or lose stewardship. Meanwhile, Ripple gains flexibility to bring in fresh leadership or reorganize technical strategy without losing its foundational thinking.

Symbolic Clean Break from Litigation Era
The timing supports a symbolic narrative: with legal burdens now settled, Ripple is turning a new page. Leadership transitions often frame such pivots. Removing Schwartz from full-time executive duty signals that the company is ready to operate beyond its prior struggle, while still honoring its technical roots.

Empowering Developer Innovation
Schwartz’s pivot toward experimental, developer‑facing, and use‑case explorations is significant. His backing of broader XRPL innovation (beyond payments) could catalyze new dApps, tools, or standards within the ecosystem, independent of Ripple’s commercial priorities. His hands‑on approach, freed from executive constraints, may be precisely what XRPL developers were hoping for.

Investor & Market Perception
Markets reacted modestly: XRP was reported down about 1.5% following the announcement, though it had already drifted downward ~6.5% over the week. Given that Schwartz wasn’t exiting the company entirely, strong negative or panic reactions seem unlikely.

For investors, this signals both stability and change: Ripple is not abandoning its technical foundations, but it is reorganizing to be more agile, less litigative, and more forward-looking.

Risks, Questions, and Watch Points

• Succession plan clarity: Who will take over the CTO’s day-to-day role? How smooth will that handover be?
• Board influence vs. execution authority: How much power will Schwartz genuinely hold in shaping future architecture and strategy?
• Ecosystem fragmentation: There’s potential tension if the XRP Ledger community diverges or develops in ways not aligned with Ripple’s commercial path.
• Market & partner confidence: Partners and institutional investors will watch whether Ripple sustains momentum and credibility without Schwartz’s full-time presence.

Final Thoughts

David Schwartz stepping down as CTO is a significant milestone—not because he’s leaving, but because he’s evolving. The move is a balancing act: he’s stepping away from the fires of daily management while preserving a strong tether to Ripple and the XRPL. For Ripple, this is a moment of transition: from survival through litigation toward growth and innovation in a more stable regulatory environment.

It’s too early to label this a departure or a retreat. Rather, it’s a reorientation. The key will be how Ripple navigates the post‑Schwartz era, and whether the company and the XRPL community can thrive in concert even as roles shift.