Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of San Francisco-based Ripple, joked who is considering dressing up as former SEC official Bill Hinman for Halloween.
The comment, which was shared on social media, took place at the CoinAlts 2023 conference, an event highlighting cryptocurrencies and alternative investments.
The harmless prank shows the current tensions between the top Ripple executive and the former SEC official.
A gathering of industry luminaries
The CoinAlts 2023 conference, backed by blue-chip companies like Harneys, brought together some of the brightest minds in the crypto space. Scheduled for October 26, the event promised insightful panels, engaging discussions, and networking opportunities with industry pioneers.
Among those in attendance were Ripple’s Garlinghouse and Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal, who exchanged friendly banter on Twitter ahead of their appearances.
Grewal, addressing Ripple’s CEO on
Past tensions simmer
At the center of Garlinghouse’s joke about Hinman is a history of serious accusations. Previously, Garlinghouse has been outspoken in his criticism of the SEC and, in particular, Bill Hinman, former director of the SEC’s Division of Corporate Finance.
At the center of the controversy are the “Hinman Papers,” a collection of documents that reveal internal discussions the SEC had before Hinman’s 2018 speech.
Garlinghouse maintains that Hinman, during his tenure as a public official, received significant payments from law firms that had a vested interest in the outcome of his speech.
Additionally, Garlinghouse previously suggested that the contents of these documents could play a pivotal role in tilting the court battle with the SEC, from which Ripple has emerged victorious.
