Ripple, a leading enterprise blockchain and payments company, is set to host a major industry gathering in New York City this week. The Swell 2026 conference will bring together 1,500 influential figures from traditional finance, crypto, academia, and the XRP ecosystem.
Historic combination of three flagship events
For the first time, Ripple is combining Swell—its flagship annual event for financial leaders—with Apex, the company’s summit for XRP Ledger developers, institutions, and investors, as well as UBRI Connect, an academic conference focused on research through Ripple’s University Blockchain Research Initiative. The conference will run from October 27 to 29, 2026, at The Shed in Manhattan.
This integrated event aims to foster collaboration across sectors by bringing together executives from Wall Street institutions, fintech firms, corporates, asset managers, and blockchain developers. Industry decision-makers will participate in talks and panel discussions centered on the future of finance, digital assets, and blockchain adoption.
Swell’s reputation is built on being the venue for major Ripple product launches and partnership announcements, drawing global attention each year from the financial services and cryptocurrency communities.
Notable speakers and partners joining Swell 2026
The high-profile speaker roster includes Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse and President Monica Long, alongside senior executives from CME Group, Bullish, BNY, Coinbase, Robinhood, Barclays, State Street, and Jump Trading. Matt Damon, the well-known actor and philanthropist, is scheduled to participate with Gary White, co-founder and CEO of Water.org.
Among the newly confirmed speakers are Luca Cosentino, Head of Digital Assets at Cross River; R.P. Eddy, CEO of Ergo; Lucas Zandoná Gomes, Community Manager at RedotPay; and Kazım Rıfat Özyılmaz, Co-Founder of Arf.
Mini dictionary: UBRI (University Blockchain Research Initiative): A global Ripple program that partners with leading universities to support academic research, technical development, and innovation in blockchain, cryptocurrency, and fintech.
Executives from prominent firms such as Barclays and State Street will join panels to discuss trends and challenges shaping digital finance.
Recent Ripple partnerships and product integrations
Ripple has recently announced a series of partnerships ahead of Swell 2026. Last week, Arf, a global settlement platform for cross-border payments, partnered with Ripple to deliver RLUSD-powered settlement liquidity to licensed payment firms operating on the XRP Ledger.
Ripple’s latest partnership with Arf will enable RLUSD-powered liquidity solutions for regulated cross-border payment companies utilizing the XRP Ledger, significantly expanding access to seamless settlement options.
Ripple also revealed a partnership with Cross River Bank to integrate RLUSD on the XRP Ledger into the bank’s core platform solutions.
In South Korea, Meritz Securities joined forces with Ripple to provide institutional custody and tokenization services across local capital markets. Meritz is Ripple’s fourth partner in Korea this year, following Kyobo Life Insurance, Kbank, and Jeonbuk Bank, and marks its first securities partnership in the country.
| Institution | Partnership Focus | Region |
|---|---|---|
| Arf | RLUSD-powered settlement liquidity | Global |
| Cross River Bank | RLUSD integration into banking platform | United States |
| Meritz Securities | Institutional custody and tokenization | South Korea |
Additionally, Ripple is collaborating with Privy—a Stripe company—to bring embedded wallets directly to the XRP Ledger. This integration will facilitate “agentic commerce” via programmable wallets, empowering AI agents to hold assets, process transactions, and support payments such as x402 transfers.
By expanding partnerships and unveiling product integrations at Swell, Ripple aims to showcase the XRP Ledger’s growing utility among global enterprises and developers.
