2024-12-17
On December 16, 2024, Ripple announced
the global launch of its USD-denominated stablecoin, Ripple USD (RLUSD).
The stablecoin will begin trading on
global exchanges starting December 17, 2024, marking a significant step forward
in stablecoin innovation with a focus on utility, compliance, and trust.
RLUSD is designed to deliver
enterprise-grade reliability, backed by U.S. dollar deposits, U.S. government
bonds, and cash equivalents, ensuring stability and liquidity.
Ripple will publish monthly third-party
attestations of RLUSD’s reserve assets, conducted by an independent auditor, to
uphold transparency.
The launch comes with strong regulatory
credentials, as RLUSD is issued under the New York Department of Financial
Services (NYDFS) limited purpose trust company charter, regarded as the global
gold standard for digital asset regulation.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse
emphasized the importance of regulatory clarity, stating that:
“As the U.S. moves toward clearer
regulations, we expect to see greater adoption of stablecoins like RLUSD, which
offer real utility and are backed by years of trust and expertise in the
industry.”
Global Availability and Growing
Ecosystem
RLUSD will debut on platforms such as Uphold,
Bitso, MoonPay, Archax, and CoinMENA, with further listings on Bullish,
Bitstamp, Mercado Bitcoin, Independent Reserve, Zero Hash, and others in the
coming weeks.
Ripple’s stablecoin aims to facilitate
critical use cases, including:
Starting early next year, Ripple
Payments—a platform handling $70 billion in payments volume—will
leverage RLUSD to enable global enterprise payments.
Ripple announced the appointment of Raghuram
Rajan, former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, and Kenneth Montgomery,
former First Vice President and COO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, to
its RLUSD advisory board.
Raghuram Rajan highlighted RLUSD’s
potential to revolutionize payments:
“Stablecoins could become the backbone
of private payments by offering a secure, scalable, and efficient alternative
to traditional systems.”
Montgomery echoed similar sentiments:
“Stablecoins are rapidly emerging as a
cornerstone of the payments landscape, delivering the speed, efficiency, and
cost-effectiveness that traditional systems often struggle to achieve.”
They join a distinguished board that
includes Sheila Bair, former FDIC Chair; David Puth, former CENTRE Consortium
CEO; and Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen.
RLUSD operates on both the XRP Ledger
and Ethereum blockchains, offering flexibility and scalability across financial
applications.
The launch of RLUSD signifies Ripple’s
attempt to solidify its leadership in digital assets
