Different claims around suspicious links between Jeffrey Epstein, a former US Treasury official, and Ex-SEC chair Gary Gensler are making the rounds over the internet. Crypto investors are now doubting that there was some regulatory payback against certain crypto projects. This might include Ripple and others.
Posts tagged “EpsteinFiles” assert that Epstein placed Gary Gensler into academic roles. He later influenced his actions as SEC chair. However, there is still no clear evidence that shows that Epstein directed regulators or shaped enforcement. But these chats do reflect opinion and access.
Epstein–Gensler emails eesurface
An email from May 7, 2018 shows that Epstein described Gensler as “pretty smart.” He even referenced Gensler’s past roles at the US Treasury and Goldman Sachs. Meanwhile, the note also discussed the former SEC Chair’s political ties and views on regulation. There was another message from May 5 that said Gensler wanted to talk about digital currencies. These emails were allegedly sent from Epstein to Lawrence H. Summers.
Jeffrey Epstein writes – I know Gary
Worked for me at Trsy in 1990s GS partner before that
Pretty smart
Pissed Some off by tossing hunch of 1990s policy under bus to ingratiate w lib democrats especially Warren wing.
Different views on his CFTC chairmanship.
Was very involved with HIiillary campaign and angling for jobs.
Epstein died in 2019 while Gensler was nominated to lead the SEC in 2021. The claims of leverage would require influence after Epstein’s death. Gensler taught blockchain courses at MIT and advised research initiatives. However, Epstein donated to MIT Media Lab during the same period. MIT later acknowledged the donations and said ties were cut. It’ll be crucial to look out for documents that can show Epstein placed Gensler in those roles.
Ripple named as a ‘Threat’
Separately, correspondence from 2014 shows Epstein held an investment allocation in Blockstream. A July 31, 2014 email from then CEO Austin Hill asked to reduce or remove Epstein’s allocation. The reason cited was conflict.
David Schwartz, Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer, in a post shared his concerns about damaging Ripple and the crypto industry. He even left out a warning. Hw wrote “I hate to be a conspiracy theorist, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this is just the tip of a giant iceberg.”
As per the emails shared, Hill wrote that Ripple and Stellar were “bad for the ecosystem we are building.” The email said backing competing protocols would harm Blockstream’s strategy. The message included MIT Media Lab director Joichi Ito and investor Reid Hoffman.
Blockstream focused on Bitcoin and Lightning tools. Ripple and Stellar pursued different ledger designs, and investor alignment disputes were common at the time.
Some $XRP supporters on X are pointing to the newly surfaced documents as evidence that Ripple was viewed as a genuine threat in the crypto industry. One user said the disclosures made them “extremely bullish on $XRP,” while another argued the attention itself showed Ripple was taken seriously from the start.
Bullish traders claim the emails strengthen the idea that Ripple wasn’t a fringe experiment, but a real challenger to Bitcoin-first infrastructure. To them, the apparent early pushback against alternative blockchain models only reinforces their long-term optimism around $XRP’s price potential.
$XRP price has dipped by almost 15% over the past 24 hours. It is trading at an average price of $1.62 at the press time.