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Ripple USD (RLUSD) is a US dollar–denominated stablecoin created to meet the needs of institutions, enterprises, and regulated financial systems that want to use blockchain technology without taking on price volatility. It is issued by Ripple through its subsidiary, Standard Custody & Trust Company, LLC, and is designed to always maintain a 1:1 value with the US dollar. Unlike many stablecoins that grew out of crypto-native trading needs, RLUSD is built specifically for real-world financial utility such as payments, settlement, liquidity management, and tokenized assets.

At its core, RLUSD exists to solve a long-standing problem in global finance: moving dollars across borders is slow, expensive, and operationally complex. Traditional systems rely on correspondent banking networks, time-zone mismatches, and multiple intermediaries. Blockchain networks can move value in seconds, but volatile assets are not suitable for accounting, settlement, or treasury operations. RLUSD combines blockchain speed with fiat stability, making it usable for institutions that require predictable value.

The trust model behind RLUSD is intentionally conservative. Every RLUSD token in circulation is fully backed by reserves held in segregated accounts. These reserves consist of US dollar cash deposits, short-term US government treasury instruments, and other highly liquid cash equivalents. The assets are held at US-regulated depository institutions and are separated from Ripple’s corporate operating funds. This segregation is critical for institutional confidence because it reduces counterparty risk and ensures that customer-backed funds are not used for unrelated business activities.

Regulatory compliance is a defining feature of RLUSD. The stablecoin is issued under a Trust Company Charter granted by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), one of the most stringent financial regulators in the United States. This framework requires strict adherence to capital requirements, custody rules, anti-money laundering standards, and consumer protection laws. To reinforce transparency, Ripple publishes monthly attestation reports confirming that the reserves held match the amount of RLUSD in circulation. This reporting structure is designed to give regulators, institutions, and users clear visibility into the backing of the stablecoin.

From a technical standpoint, RLUSD is natively issued on two major blockchain networks: the XRP Ledger (XRPL) and Ethereum. On XRPL, RLUSD benefits from extremely low transaction fees, fast finality, and a payments-focused architecture that has been refined over years of production use. This makes it well-suited for high-frequency payments, treasury movements, and cross-border transfers. On Ethereum, RLUSD integrates into the broader decentralized finance ecosystem, where it can be used in smart contracts, liquidity pools, lending protocols, and tokenized asset platforms. This dual-chain approach allows RLUSD to move between enterprise payment rails and open financial applications without fragmenting liquidity.

The intended use cases for RLUSD reflect Ripple’s long-standing focus on financial infrastructure rather than speculative trading. For cross-border payments, RLUSD allows businesses to settle transactions in near real time without relying on pre-funded nostro accounts or waiting days for bank settlements. For on- and off-ramps, it acts as a stable bridge between traditional fiat systems and blockchain networks, simplifying how money enters and exits the digital asset economy. In decentralized finance and tokenization, RLUSD can function as a stable base asset for trading pairs, collateral, lending markets, and the settlement of tokenized real-world assets such as bonds, funds, or commodities. In global settlement and foreign exchange workflows, institutions can use RLUSD as a neutral settlement asset that reduces reconciliation complexity and counterparty exposure.

RLUSD’s role within Ripple’s broader ecosystem is also important. XRP has traditionally been used as a bridge asset for liquidity in cross-border transfers, particularly where direct fiat corridors are inefficient. RLUSD complements this by providing a stable unit of account for pricing, settlement, and treasury management. Together, XRP and RLUSD allow Ripple’s infrastructure to support both volatility-tolerant liquidity routing and volatility-free settlement, depending on the needs of the transaction.

As regulatory scrutiny around stablecoins increases worldwide, the design choices behind RLUSD position it closer to traditional financial instruments than experimental crypto products. Its emphasis on regulated issuance, transparent reserves, and enterprise-grade custody reflects a belief that stablecoins will increasingly be judged by the same standards as other forms of digital money. Rather than competing on yield or aggressive growth, RLUSD focuses on reliability, compliance, and integration with existing financial systems.

In practical terms, the emergence of RLUSD signals a shift in how blockchain-based dollars are being designed and used. Instead of serving primarily as trading collateral, RLUSD is structured as settlement infrastructure. It is meant to move value, close books, reduce friction, and integrate with systems that already manage trillions of dollars globally. As financial institutions continue exploring blockchain-based payments, tokenization, and real-time settlement, stablecoins built with this mindset are likely to play an increasingly central role.
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