Ripple Unveils Initial Partners for RLUSD Stablecoin

• Ripple aims to position RLUSD as a leading stablecoin in the rapidly growing $170 billion market, focusing on regulatory compliance and utility in cross-border payments.
• The RLUSD stablecoin will be backed by short-term U.S. Treasuries and cash equivalents, with testing currently ongoing on the XRP Ledger and Ethereum networks.

In the latest push for its USD-pegged RLUSD stablecoin, blockchain startup Ripple announced its exchange partners and market maker partners during the Ripple Swell 2024 conference in Miami, Florida, on Tuesday.

In its official announcement, Ripple has named exchange partners such as Bitstamp, Uphold, Bitso, Independent Reserve, MoonPay, CoinMENA, and Bullish, for hosting its RLUSD stablecoin. Similarly, its market maker partners include Keyrock and B2C2 which will provide liquidity support to the RLUSD stablecoin during the launch period.

Today at #RippleSwell, we’re proud to announce our Ripple USD exchange partners.

Upon regulatory approval, $RLUSD will be globally available for institutions and users from @UpholdInc, @BitStamp, @Bitso, @Moonpay, @Indereserve, @CoinMENA, and @Bullish. https://t.co/iZ7L1MHpn3

— Ripple (@Ripple) October 15, 2024

Moreover, Ripple has appointed former FDIC chair Sheila Bair and David Puth, ex-CEO of Centre, the consortium behind USD Coin (USDC), to the advisory board for its stablecoin. Speaking on this development, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said:

With our initial exchange partners, clear utility and demand for RLUSD, and a strong focus on regulatory compliance, Ripple’s stablecoin is poised to become the gold standard for enterprise-grade stablecoins. “Our payment solutions will leverage RLUSD, XRP, and other digital assets to enable faster, more reliable, and cost-effective cross-border payments.

Although the official date for the launch of RLUSD stablecoin is not clear, Garlinghouse said last month that it would happen in “weeks, not months” from now. He also warned users to be vigilant about any RLUSD scams and only wait for the official announcement from the firm, reported CNF.

Ripple’s RLUSD Eyes Big Pie of the Stablecoin Market

The announcement follows Ripple’s earlier plans to launch its stablecoin, aiming to capture a share of the rapidly expanding $170 billion stablecoin market. Stablecoins play a crucial role in the crypto economy, acting as a link between traditional government-issued currencies and blockchain-based digital assets. Also, the stablecoin market is likely to grow to a trillion dollars by 2030. Thus, Ripple’s RLUSD will be pitching direct competition to giants like USDT and USDC through its institution-first approach, reported CNF.

President of Ripple Labs, Monica Long, said that the company is operationally ready from their end. Through the stablecoin, Ripple intends to capitalize on its established role in payments and serve as a crucial bridge for the tokenization of real-world assets, Long stated. In the last 24 hours, Ripple has already minted 4.5 million RLUSD stablecoins, reported CNF. Speaking on the matter, Long said:

For RLUSD and stablecoins generally, we definitely have validated the utility of them with payments. We’re also believers in this broader trend of real-world asset tokenization. When we think beyond tokenizing money to different instruments and capital markets like securities and bonds, real estate and other assets, you need a stable coin that’s trusted and very reliable, very robustly managed for on and offramps as well.

RLUSD’s value will be supported by short-term U.S. Treasuries, dollar deposits, and cash equivalents. It is currently undergoing testing on the XRP Ledger and Ethereum networks. The company plans to publish independent monthly attestations of its reserves, which will be conducted by the San Francisco-based accounting firm BPM.