Ripple's $10 million contribution to lending equity could help underserved small businesses access financing and generate up to $900 million in GDP over the next decade, according to research published by Accion Opportunity Fund (AOF), a nonprofit small business lender.
The $10 million allocation forms part of Ripple's broader $15 million RLUSD donation to AOF in 2025. Jonathan Perri, social impact director at Ripple, announced the $900 million GDP projection on October 12. AOF published its underlying findings on October 8.
How the Capital Could Support Lending
The $10 million in permanent lending equity remains on AOF's balance sheet as a financial foundation for attracting additional capital. Research applying historical lending multipliers estimates the contribution could attract up to $50 million in new debt capital from impact investors. Loan repayments would enable that capital to finance subsequent borrowers, potentially producing roughly $156 million in cumulative lending over the next decade.
The GDP estimate applies historical multipliers to the gift based on research covering nearly 20,000 businesses and $960 million in loans. Researchers used the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis' Regional Input-Output Modeling System to estimate how lending activity affects the wider economy. Estimated historical results included $5.46 billion in GDP, more than 60,000 retained jobs, and over 10,000 new jobs.
Broader RLUSD Funding Commitments
The remaining $5 million of Ripple's $15 million donation finances education, research, and a storytelling campaign, including the Digital Leap Forward Accelerator, which helps small business owners adopt digital tools and improve financial knowledge.
Ripple has also used RLUSD, a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar, to finance education through nonprofit organizations. Its $25 million education commitment supported DonorsChoose and Teach For America, with most funding delivered in RLUSD. First-year results included 48,108 classroom projects funded through DonorsChoose across all 50 states.
Expanding Institutional Infrastructure
Standard Chartered launched RLUSD custody on the XRP Ledger on October 12 through its branch in the Dubai International Financial Centre. A planned collaboration between Ripple and LMAX Group would allow eligible tokens to serve as trading collateral while remaining in bank custody.
AOF plans a public discussion with its research partners and Ripple on October 30 at 1 p.m. EDT.
