Ripple has announced the integration of its USD-backed stablecoin RLUSD into its flagship cross-border payments platform, Ripple Payments. This move, according to the company, is expected to enhance speed, lower costs, and broaden the existing suite of services the platform provides to financial institutions worldwide. First introduced in December 2024, RLUSD was designed as an enterprise-grade, USD-denominated stablecoin created with what Ripple describes as “trust, utility, and compliance at its core.” The company notes that RLUSD has already reached nearly $250 million in market capitalization, facilitated $10 billion in trading volume, and continues to draw interest from financial entities seeking stable, compliance-centered assets for cross-border operations. Ripple Payments Now Support RLUSD According to Ripple, RLUSD’s design is not focused on retail payments. Instead, it aims to help enterprises solve complex operational challenges, such as instantaneous settlement and cost-effective transfers. As stated in the official press release : “RLUSD is an enterprise-grade, USD-denominated stablecoin created with trust, utility, and compliance at its core – backed by Ripple’s years of experience working with both crypto and traditional finance.” Ripple Payments is the company’s flagship platform that processes what Ripple indicates are billions of dollars in transaction volume. The integration of RLUSD into this platform adds another layer of stability and scalability to a network that already provides settlement services across numerous currencies and jurisdictions. The press release further explains: “Today, Ripple has enabled RLUSD cross-border payments in its flagship payments solution, which processes billions of dollars in volume. Unlike many stablecoins, which are designed for retail use, RLUSD has built-in global enterprise utility to improve the speed and efficiency of cross-border payments.” Initially, cross-border payment providers BKK Forex and iSend will use RLUSD for treasury operations. Over time, Ripple states it aims to expand adoption for more financial institutions using Ripple Payments. The company asserts that the built-in compliance features of RLUSD help reduce some of the friction that can arise when moving money between different regulatory environments. RLUSD is presently available on several trading platforms, including LMAX Digital, Zero Hash, Bitstamp, and Bullish. As of April 2, 2025, the company has announced that Kraken—a major and long-standing crypto exchange—has also listed RLUSD, further broadening its accessibility. According to the release: “Ripple is continuing to work with top-tier partners around the world to make RLUSD globally available. In addition to partners and exchanges LMAX Digital, Zero Hash, Bitstamp and Bullish, today RLUSD is now available on Kraken Ripple positions RLUSD as a tool for bridging the gap between legacy banking environments and the digital asset ecosystem. The press release notes: “RLUSD is ideal for a number of financial use cases, allowing enterprises to facilitate instant settlement, reliably bridge between traditional fiat currencies and the crypto ecosystem, and provide collateralization for trading tokenized real-world assets.” Jack McDonald, Senior Vice President of Stablecoins, elaborated on the rapid adoption of RLUSD and its growing role in the broader financial ecosystem: “We’re seeing the market cap continue to grow, outpacing our internal projections. In short order, RLUSD is being used for a number of use cases, including use as collateral in both crypto and tradfi trading markets. New exchanges are listing RLUSD on an ongoing basis and we’re actively working with NGOs who see the opportunity to streamline giving through stablecoins.” At press time, XRP traded at $2.04.
