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- Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin aims to improve cross-border payments by integrating with XRP.
- Increased RLUSD adoption could boost XRP liquidity and reduce its supply through transaction fees.
The upcoming RLUSD stablecoin of Ripple is creating quite a buzz in the XRP community. According to Brett, a crypto analyst on X, RLUSD can increase the functionality and adoption of XRP in cross-border transmissions. The potential of the stablecoin and how it will affect the XRP price has boosted the market sentiments even with regulatory issues pending.
RLUSD intends to transform conventional cross-border transactions through innovative solutions. Current methods are correspondent banking networks and pre-funded nostro accounts which are expensive and not effective. To overcome these difficulties, Ripple plans to involve RLUSD and XRP.
In real life, a bank will take the fiat currency and swap it for RLUSD, which is then swapped for XRP. The XRP acts as an intermediary asset for quick, inexpensive cross-border transactions. When the payment is made to the recipient, XRP is converted to RLUSD or the local currency of the recipient’s country. This process removes the need to hold foreign currency and decreases costs while increasing settlement times. Through the use of XRP’s liquidity, RLUSD offers an efficient and expandable means for interbank settlement, which in turn may increase the demand for XRP.
Implications for XRP Liquidity and Scarcity
The launch of RLUSD could increase the usage of XRP. As a bridge asset for RLUSD transactions, XRP will be under pressure from greater liquidity needs. This increase in usage is consistent with the hypothesis that the adoption of the XRP Ledger and RLUSD can bolster XRP’s price trend.
Also, XRP’s deflationary model, the burning of XRP during transactions, could also come into play. Lack of supply coupled with increased demand may result in increased prices in the future. Analysts have noted similarities with Shiba Inu, a token that uses a defi protocol and has a limited supply. The RLUSD also has ripple effects across Ripple’s wider ecosystem.
Regulatory Delays and RLUSD Launch Timeline
Ripple rolled out RLUSD in the first half of 2024, and the initial phase started in August. The stablecoin will be integrated with both the XRP Ledger and the Ethereum network, making it possible to work across systems. Ripple has engaged key market participants in the form of exchanges such as Uphold, Bitstamp and Bitso and market makers B2C2 and Keyrock for liquidity.
Although there was speculation that the launch would take place in December 2024, Ripple has not yet received the green light from the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). Ripple’s CTO David Schwartz said that he is confident about launching RLUSD before the year is over; however, he noted that there may be some issues with the release owing to regulations and the holidays.
While RLUSD continues to develop, ripple whales have been accumulating more XRP. A market pull back from $2.9 to $2.2 saw whales buy 120 million XRP tokens worth 288 million dollars. According to market analysts, this step can be considered as a demonstration of confidence in further development of XRP.
While $XRP dropped from $2.90 to $2.22, whales bought the dip. They purchased over 120 million #XRP, totaling $288 million! pic.twitter.com/aF2L9dB6Ks
— Ali (@ali_charts) December 7, 2024
Whale action is usually to stabilize the market during a dip and this makes the smaller investors calm down, and the market sentiment is then positive. The combination of RLUSD’s potential and significant whale interest positions XRP for a promising outlook.
