Ripple’s USD-backed stablecoin, RLUSD, has hit a $1.26 billion market cap in less than a year. That makes it the third-largest among U.S.-regulated stablecoins positioned for GENIUS Act compliance when the federal framework takes effect in 2027.
RLUSD launched in December 2024 as an enterprise-grade, dollar-pegged token fully backed 1:1 by cash and short-term U.S. Treasuries. It runs on both the XRP Ledger and Ethereum, giving it access to fast cross-border payments and deep DeFi liquidity.
The stablecoin’s circulating supply jumped 28% in November alone to reach the billion-dollar mark. It now sits behind only USDC and PayPal’s PYUSD among U.S.-regulated dollar tokens. Strategic exchange listings, institutional pilots with major financial players, and dual-chain architecture drove the climb.
Here’s how RLUSD reached $1.26 billion, why its regulatory positioning matters, and what this means for XRP (CRYPTO: XRP).
RLUSD’s Rapid Rise to a $1.26 B Market Cap in Under a Year
Ripple USD launched in December 2024 as an enterprise stablecoin issued by Standard Custody & Trust Company, a Ripple subsidiary operating under a New York trust charter. The NYDFS license subjects RLUSD to one of the world’s strictest regulatory regimes. Each token is backed 1:1 by cash and short-term U.S. Treasuries held in segregated accounts, and Ripple publishes monthly reserve attestations to maintain transparency.
This regulatory foundation drove rapid adoption in 2025. By early November, RLUSD crossed $1 billion in market cap. The stablecoin then climbed from about $960 million at the start of November to $1.26 billion by early December—the 30% monthly jump pushed RLUSD into the top tier globally.
How RLUSD Reached $1.26B Market Cap
RLUSD reached the $1.26 billion milestone as a result of Ripple’s strategic integrations and institutional adoption. Here are the three key drivers of RLUSD’s growth.
Major Exchange Support Drove Liquidity
U.S.-regulated crypto platforms embraced RLUSD quickly. Gemini made RLUSD a base currency for trading and waived fees on RLUSD/USD pairs. The exchange called it an “industry-leading” stablecoin backed by safe assets.
Kraken, Bullish, LMAX Digital, and Bitstamp also listed RLUSD early. Retail traders can park funds in RLUSD between trades, knowing it holds its $1.00 value. The broad exchange support provided the liquidity and visibility needed for rapid adoption.
Dual-Chain Architecture Unlocked Ethereum DeFi
RLUSD operates on both the XRP Ledger and Ethereum. This dual-chain design taps into Ethereum’s DeFi ecosystem while leveraging XRPL’s fast, low-cost payment network.
Ethereum hosts over $1.01 billion of RLUSD’s circulating supply compared to $225 million on XRPL. By launching on Ethereum, RLUSD plugged into lending protocols, decentralized exchanges, and yield farms. That attracted crypto investors looking for a compliant dollar token in DeFi.
Institutional Pilots Validated Real-World Utility
In November 2025, Ripple launched a pilot with Mastercard, WebBank, and Gemini to settle credit card transactions using RLUSD on the XRP Ledger. WebBank sends RLUSD over XRPL to instantly settle daily payment obligations with Mastercard, replacing the traditional multi-day wait for bank ACH transfers.
Ripple president Monica Long called it a “meaningful step” toward showing how regulated digital assets can speed up institutional payments. The pilot validated RLUSD’s utility beyond crypto trading.
GENIUS Act Positioning and U.S. Regulatory Edge
The GENIUS Act became law in July 2025 and takes effect in January 2027. It establishes the first comprehensive federal framework for stablecoins, requiring 1:1 reserve backing, monthly audits, federal or state licensing, and strict anti-money laundering controls.
RLUSD is positioned to lead compliance. It already meets the core requirements: NYDFS regulation, 1:1 backing with monthly attestations, and transparent reserve management. When the law takes effect, RLUSD won’t need major operational changes.
Third-Largest Among U.S.-Regulated Stablecoins
RLUSD ranks third among U.S.-regulated stablecoins positioned for GENIUS Act compliance, behind USDC (Circle, $75 billion) and PYUSD (PayPal). All three are NYDFS-regulated and structured to meet GENIUS Act standards.
This positioning gives RLUSD a competitive edge. Stablecoins without clear U.S. regulatory frameworks face uncertainty when enforcement begins. Banks and institutions prefer working with compliant tokens that won’t require major restructuring.
The compliance-first approach attracted institutional partnerships. BlackRock and VanEck selected RLUSD as a redemption rail for tokenized Treasury funds. Prime brokerages approved RLUSD as eligible collateral.
Four Ways RLUSD Growth Benefits the XRP Ecosystem
RLUSD’s growth creates direct benefits for XRP. Ripple has long aimed to build an “Internet of Value,” and a trusted USD stablecoin is a critical piece. With RLUSD gaining scale, Ripple can connect fiat liquidity with its XRP-powered payment network more seamlessly.
Fresh Cross-Border Payment Integration
RLUSD’s integration with the XRP Ledger opens new avenues for cross-border transactions. Ripple’s flagship product for international payments traditionally used XRP as a bridge currency to convert one fiat currency to another. Now RLUSD can complement XRP in these flows.
A remittance provider might swap local currency for RLUSD, send RLUSD via RippleNet, and convert to the target currency using XRP to optimize liquidity. The presence of a Ripple-issued stablecoin reduces reliance on third-party stablecoins like USDC or USDT in RippleNet transactions.
DeFi Liquidity Flywheel for XRP
In Q2 2025, Ripple launched an EVM sidechain for the XRPL, enabling Ethereum-compatible smart contracts within the XRP ecosystem. RLUSD works seamlessly across this sidechain, enabling atomic swaps between XRPL and Ethereum using XRP for gas fees.
Developers can build DeFi applications on the XRPL sidechain that use RLUSD for value transfer and XRP for network security. Analysts note the upgrade is “neutral for RLUSD but bullish for XRP” because it creates new demand for XRP whenever RLUSD flows through cross-chain applications.
The more RLUSD circulates, the more transactions occur on XRPL or its sidechains. That drives XRP fee usage and integrates XRP deeper into DeFi.
Institutional Pipeline Access
BlackRock’s BUIDL fund and VanEck’s VBILL token launched in 2025 as tokenized Treasury products targeting crypto markets. Both needed a way for investors to convert between fund tokens and cash quickly.
RLUSD was selected as a redemption rail due to its regulatory status. Institutions can redeem a tokenized Treasury fund directly for RLUSD, then swap for fiat or other crypto. When Bybit listed RLUSD and these integrations went live, XRP’s open interest jumped $1 billion.
As RLUSD embeds into institutional products, it draws more attention to XRP. Institutional players exploring RLUSD often consider XRP for liquidity management.
Deflationary Fee Burn Mechanism
Every RLUSD transaction on the XRP Ledger incurs a small network fee paid in XRP. That fee is permanently destroyed, reducing XRP’s total supply.
The effect is small per transaction, but at scale it matters. If RLUSD processes millions of transactions monthly across payments, DeFi, and institutional rails, the cumulative XRP burn increases. That creates a direct link between RLUSD’s success and XRP’s supply dynamics.
What RLUSD’s Growth Means for XRP Price
RLUSD hit $1.26 billion in market cap less than a year after launch. That puts it third among U.S.-regulated stablecoins positioned for GENIUS Act compliance, behind only USDC and PYUSD.
The stablecoin’s growth benefits XRP in four ways: cross-border payment integration, DeFi liquidity expansion, institutional pipeline access, and deflationary fee burns. Partnerships with Mastercard, BlackRock, and VanEck show RLUSD works beyond crypto trading.
As GENIUS Act rules take effect in 2027, RLUSD’s compliance-first approach could capture institutional demand for regulated stablecoins. That makes RLUSD’s success a potential catalyst for XRP adoption in 2026-2027.
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