Ripple's stablecoin RLUSD is expanding its payment infrastructure globally through TrustLinq, a Swiss-regulated financial intermediary. The platform now enables RLUSD transactions across more than 190 countries and 80 currencies, extending the stablecoin's reach beyond crypto trading into cross-border payments through traditional banking channels.
The expansion reflects growing institutional adoption for RLUSD, bolstered by partnerships including Standard Chartered's custody service and Ripple's participation in OKX's funding round, valued at $25 billion pre-money. RLUSD's market capitalization currently exceeds $2.5 billion, driven by increased circulating supply.
Measuring Real Adoption
However, geographic coverage alone does not guarantee meaningful adoption. The strength of RLUSD's network will depend on actual transaction volumes, supported payment corridors, banking integration, and settlement success. The XRP Ledger currently processes approximately 2.6 million daily transactions, though this throughput does not require institutions to maintain large XRP balances.
XRP's Uncertain Benefit
Despite RLUSD's institutional expansion, XRP has not experienced corresponding gains. As of writing, XRP traded at $1.38, down 16% from its September high. Each XRPL transaction burns a small amount of XRP, but transaction fees remain too low to create significant buying pressure on the token.
Exchange data show mixed signals. Binance reserves have decreased to approximately $2.6 billion in recent weeks, making it difficult to assess future demand. XRP would require stronger spot buying, tighter exchange supply, and deeper market liquidity to meaningfully benefit from increased RLUSD adoption.
