Former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan will headline the opening of Ripple’s Swell 2026 conference, bringing a former central banker into an event focused on the growing overlap between traditional finance and blockchain technology.
According to Ripple’s disclosure, Rajan will deliver the opening keynote at the Institutional Summit on October 27. Swell 2026 will run through October 29 at The Shed in New York City.
Rajan to Open Institutional Summit
Rajan previously served as Governor of the Reserve Bank of India and is currently a Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
He also co-leads the Federal Reserve Balance Sheet Policy Working Group. His appearance adds a major traditional-finance voice to a conference that is expected to feature discussions around banking, digital assets, payments, capital markets and blockchain infrastructure.
Ripple Plans its Biggest Swell Yet
Ripple is presenting the 2026 edition as its largest Swell conference to date. The company expects more than 1,500 attendees, at least 75 speakers, and over 50 sessions across three stages.
For the first time, Swell will also be combined with XRPL Apex, Ripple’s developer-focused event.
The structure brings institutional finance discussions and XRP Ledger ecosystem development under one conference.
Major Finance and Crypto Executives Join Lineup
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, President Monica Long and CTO Emeritus David Schwartz are among the featured speakers.
The wider lineup includes Bullish Chairman and CEO Tom Farley, Robinhood crypto executive Johann Kerbrat, Tradeweb CEO Billy Hult and BNY Global Head of Markets Laide Majiyagbe.
Matt Damon, co-founder of Water.org, is also scheduled to appear. Other participants include executives from Intercontinental Exchange, Susquehanna Crypto, PEAK6, Rothera, the XRP Ledger Foundation and XRPL Commons.
Universities and Developers Also Represented
Academics from Columbia, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Wharton, the University of Luxembourg and other institutions are expected to participate.
The combined Swell and XRPL Apex format could broaden discussions beyond payments by bringing developers, financial institutions and researchers into the same venue.
Final Thoughts
Swell 2026 is shaping up as Ripple’s largest effort yet to connect traditional finance with blockchain infrastructure. Rajan’s opening appearance adds institutional credibility, while the merger with XRPL Apex gives the XRP Ledger developer ecosystem a larger role in the event.
Also Read: Indian’s Now Own More Gold Than Crypto, but 97.5 Million Users Signal a Shift
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