RLUSD launched in December 2024 on XRP Ledger and Ethereum, and has grown to over $1 billion in total supply.
Ripple News
Ripple is testing its RLUSD stablecoin on Optimism, Base, Ink, and Unichain ahead of plans to launch on layer-2 blockchains next year. The payments-focused blockchain firm tapped Wormhole and its Native Token Transfers token standard to enable cross-chain movement, according to a Monday announcement.
The expansion begins with a test phase and awaits regulatory approval from the New York Department of Financial Services for public rollout in 2026. RLUSD launched in December 2024 on XRP Ledger and Ethereum, and has grown to over $1 billion in total supply.
The pilot integrates Wormhole's NTT standard, allowing RLUSD to move natively across chains without wrapping or synthetic assets. The approach maintains liquidity and regulatory control while supporting decentralized finance use cases across networks optimized for speed and lower costs.
Jack McDonald, senior vice president of stablecoin at Ripple, said stablecoins are the gateway to DeFi and institutional adoption. McDonald stated RLUSD is the first U.S. trust-regulated stablecoin on layer-2 networks, setting a clear standard for how compliance and on-chain efficiency can work together.
RLUSD is issued under a NYDFS Trust Charter. Ripple obtained initial approval for a federal trust bank charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency last week, which would make RLUSD the first stablecoin under both state and federal regulatory oversight if final approval is secured.
The rollout supports a wrapped version of XRP called wXRP, making it easier for holders to use the token alongside RLUSD for swaps, lending, and payments across supported chains. Retail crypto users could convert wXRP to RLUSD within a DeFi app on Optimism or Base without leaving the chain.
Ripple's broader strategy positions XRP Ledger as an integral component of on-chain institutional finance. The company integrated with Wormhole in June to expand XRPL's multichain interoperability capabilities across the crypto ecosystem.
Ripple raised $500 million at a $40 billion valuation in November. The funding round was led by investors from Fortress and affiliates of Citadel Securities and joined by Galaxy Digital, Pantera, Brevan Howard, and Marshall Wace.
The company appears on track to secure added regulatory certainty through its conditional national trust bank charter approval. The dual regulatory structure would provide RLUSD with oversight that no stablecoin currently holds, strengthening its positioning for institutional adoption in digital asset markets.
This article contains links to third-party websites or other content for information purposes only (“Third-Party Sites”). The Third-Party Sites are not under the control of CoinMarketCap, and CoinMarketCap is not responsible for the content of any Third-Party Site, including without limitation any link contained in a Third-Party Site, or any changes or updates to a Third-Party Site. CoinMarketCap is providing these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement, approval or recommendation by CoinMarketCap of the site or any association with its operators. This article is intended to be used and must be used for informational purposes only. It is important to do your own research and analysis before making any material decisions related to any of the products or services described. This article is not intended as, and shall not be construed as, financial advice. The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s [company’s] own and do not necessarily reflect those of CoinMarketCap.
