XRP Creator’s RLUSD Hits $1B Milestone

Ripple’s stablecoin, RLUSD, surpassed $1 billion in market capitalization less than a year after its launch in December 2024.

The cut makes RLUSD the 10th largest US dollar-backed stablecoin by market capitalization, according to data from CoinGecko. Issued by XRP creator Ripple, RLUSD is backed by short-term US dollar reserves and Treasuries, and is designed to be integrated into Ripple’s broader payment and liquidity infrastructure.

While RLUSD’s market cap remains small compared to the sector’s two dominant players — Tether’s USDT at $183 billion and Circle’s USDC at $76 billion — its growth signals strong initial demand. The circulating supply of RLUSD currently splits between $819 million in tokens on the Ethereum blockchain and $203 million on the XRP Ledger network, RWA.xyz data shows

Most stablecoins have taken years to reach the billion-dollar mark, and RLUSD’s rapid ascent suggests that Ripple has been able to leverage its existing customer base and global financial network to accelerate adoption. The company marketed the token mainly to institutional clients looking for stable on-chain settlement options, but notable traction among retail users added to its rapid growth.

Monica Long, president of Ripple, told CoinDesk in an interview that demand for the company’s payment services is growing. Ripple has processed nearly $100 billion in payment volumes to date, and RLUSD is the “primary stablecoin” used for payment flows, he added.

“We doubled the number of customers throughout the year,” Long said, adding that Ripple now has more than 75 global licenses.

Ripple has been on an acquisition spree this year, buying four companies to complement the company’s digital asset offering for institutions and businesses. He acquired the first broker Hidden Road, now Ripple Primefor $1.25 billion, bought stablecoin payments signed Rail for $200 million, with the latest targets being the provider of treasury technology GTreasury and the start of the infrastructure of wallets. palisade.

“It’s been a really big year for us, both organically and inorganically,” Long told Coindesk. “We take all of this [to] put all the pieces together.”

Ripple’s acquisition strategy, Long explained, is to find targets that either accelerate existing offerings, such as Palisade and Rail by adding stablecoin payment capabilities, or help expand the business into new verticals such as Hidden Road’s first brokerage.

“We will continue to be opportunistic [with acquisitions]. We continue to have a really healthy and great balance sheet,” Long said.