Ripple Labs says it will launch its RLUSD stablecoin on December 17 on several crypto exchanges, according to a Monday announcement. The company is also adding two high-profile former central bankers to its stablecoin advisory board to help with the rollout process.
JUST IN: Ripple to launch $RLUSD stablecoin on December 17.
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) December 16, 2024
Ripple Labs will enlist an independent auditing firm to create attestations of RLUSD reserve assets and then publish them monthly. The Ripple stablecoin has seen plenty of hype around it since Ripple’s unveiling announcement earlier this year. The platform’s native cryptocurrency, XRP, is also up following the release date news.
Ripple aims to compete for a piece of the rapidly growing stablecoin market with the launch of RLUSD. Currently, that market is dominated by Tether’s $140 billion USDT and Circle’s $40 billion USDC tokens. However, the momentum around Ripple Labs this year has the potential to catapult RLUSD sky-high straight away, making it a worthy competitor in the stablecoin world. “RLUSD will be available on global exchanges starting tomorrow,” Ripple said in a statement Monday. “Each RLUSD token is fully backed by U.S. dollar deposits, U.S. government bonds, and cash equivalents.”
RLUSD will be initially listed on several exchanges and crypto platforms including Uphold; MoonPay; Archax and CoinMENA. Further listings on Bitso; Bullish; Bitstamp; Mercado Bitcoin and Independent Reserve, Zero Hash and others in the coming weeks. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced last week that RLUSD sealed “final approval” from the New York Department of Financial Services, and would be coming soon without an exact release date. Now, the stablecoin finally has one.
Ripple Labs Ends 2024 with a Bang
Following its years-long legal battle with the SEC, Ripple has flourished in the final months of 2024. The company’s native cryptocurrency is now the fifth largest in the world by market cap. Ripple Labs’ decision to launch a stablecoin was also met with optimistic ears earlier this year. The coin has been ready for some time and will likely surge further following RLUSD’s launch.
“Early on, Ripple made a deliberate choice to launch our stablecoin under the NYDFS limited purpose trust company charter, widely regarded as the premier regulatory standard worldwide,” Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said in Monday’s statement. “As the U.S. moves toward clearer regulations, we expect to see greater adoption of stablecoins like RLUSD.”