Ripple is preparing to launch its United States dollar-pegged stablecoin Ripple USD (RLUSD). The cryptocurrency community highly anticipates the launch, which is expected on Dec. 4.
According to Fox Business, Ripple is expected to launch RLUSD on Dec. 4, following approval by the New York Department of Financial Services.
The blockchain firm has cautioned against tokens claiming to be RLUSD or Ripple USD until an official announcement confirms the launch.
Preview listings of RLUSD have already appeared on major cryptocurrency data providers, including CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap.
RLUSD will initially launch on Ripple’s XRPL and Ethereum
Introduced in June, RLUSD is a 1:1 US dollar-backed stablecoin 100% backed by US dollar deposits, short-term US government Treasurys and other cash equivalents.
Since early August, the RLUSD stablecoin has been in beta testing on Ripple’s decentralized public blockchain platform, the XRP Ledger (XRPL), and the Ethereum mainnet. Ripple said it plans to expand RLUSD to additional blockchains and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols over time.
Ripple first introduced RLUSD in June 2024. Source: Ripple
While RLUSD is yet to launch, Ripple Labs-linked XRP (XRP) has been rallying in the past weeks, reemerging as the third-largest coin by market cap in early December.
RLUSD and XRP will “complement each other”
Once RLUSD is available, Ripple plans to use both RLUSD and XRP in its cross-border payments solution to serve its global customers, the company said in RLUSD’s beta testing announcement.
In June, Ripple president Monica Long also said that RLUSD was built to be “complementary and additive” to XRP.
According to some sources, Ripple sees RLUSD as “beneficial” for XRP as RLUSD and XRP will be paired with each other.
While XRP will help add liquidity to RLUSD with its significant availability on exchanges, the stablecoin’s price will also be stabilized by pairing to prevent depegging.
RLUSD will be more focused on large institutional players
According to Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse, RLUSD will focus more on large institutional players.
“We think there’s an opportunity for another player in the stablecoin market to exist that focuses on institutions, focuses on compliance,” Garlinghouse said in a conversation with Token Relations co-founder Jacquelyn Melinek recorded in September 2024.
Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse at the Korea Blockchain Week in September 2024. Source: YouTube
He also mentioned that Ripple has already used stablecoins in its payment flows, minting 20% of Circle’s USD Coin (USDC).
“Obviously, there was a big event last spring in the US, 18 months ago, where USDC depegged, and we felt like there was an opportunity for a credible player that’s already working with lots of financial institutions to lean into that market,” Garlinghouse added.
While Garlinghouse hinted that RLUSD would mainly focus on institutions, some users reported being able to add the stablecoin on the self-custodial XRP wallet Xaman on Dec. 4.
Xaman wallet reportedly features RLUSD as of Dec. 4, 2024. Source: Life In The Fast Lane
Cointelegraph approached Ripple and Xaman for a comment regarding the anticipated RLUSD launch but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
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