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Ripple CEO Says XRP Remains Top Priority Despite RLUSD Stablecoin Expansion
- Garlinghouse reaffirmed XRP as Ripple’s central focus, arguing that RLUSD supports its growth by bringing additional liquidity and use cases to the XRP Ledger.
- Around half of RLUSD is issued on XRPL, while Moody’s awarded the stablecoin an A2 long-term rating and its highest short-term rating of P-1.
- RLUSD ranks as the eighth-largest stablecoin with a US$2.61 billion market cap, remaining far behind market leaders USDT and USDC.
- XRP rose 3.33% to US$1.30 amid a Democratic midterm victory, while Garlinghouse highlighted the election of pro-crypto candidates from both major parties.
Ripple is not planning on giving up on its “North Star” XRP, according to Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse. He spoke in an interview during Ripple Swell about the emerging role of Ripple’s stablecoin and how the focus on RLUSD wasn’t intended to take away from XRP.
In fact, Garlinghouse said that what they’re building with the stablecoin is “in service” of XRP. He said that roughly half of all RLUSD is issued on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), and this means more liquidity on XRPL.
Our goal is drive as much liquidity, drive as much trust and utility through XRP as possible.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse In a post on X (formerly Twitter), WrathofKahneman argued that more liquidity could make XRP “easier to use in the long run”. Garlinghouse agreed and emphasised again that it isn’t about competition but complementarity.
RLUSD isn’t competing with XRP. It’s competing with other stablecoins. Use case matters, and I want those use cases running on the XRPL.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse Garlinghouse also said that RLUSD is the “gold standard from a regulatory view”, adding that Moody’s had given RLUSD what he described as “the most highest rated from a safety point of view of all stablecoins”.
Moody’s gave RLUSD an A2 long-term rating and its highest short-term rating of P-1, citing the quality of its reserves, which consist mainly of US government bonds and cash.
Read also: Binance Says 95% Of Affected Tokens Restored as CEO Defends Exchange’s Finances
How RLUSD Fares Against Other Stablecoins
Data from CoinMarketCap shows RLUSD is the eighth-largest stablecoin at present with a market cap of US$2.61 billion (AU$3.72 billion) and a daily volume of US$343.49 million (AU$489.73 million). That’s compared to the largest stablecoins, USDT and USDC.
Tether’s USDT has a market cap of US$178.18 billion (AU$254.04 billion) and a daily volume of US$71.88 billion (AU$102.48 billion), while Circle’s USDC has a market cap of US$70.88 billion (AU$101.06 billion) and a daily volume of US$14.61 billion (AU$20.83 billion).
With a total market cap of US$306 billion (AU$436.32 billion) and a daily volume of US$89.76 billion (AU$127.99 billion), these two by far dominate the stablecoin market.
Related: XRP Ledger Set to Fix Token Creation Loophole After Two-Week Delay
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XRP is the fourth-largest crypto asset excluding stablecoins. It has a market cap of US$82.97 billion (AU$118.31 billion) and a daily volume of US$2.82 billion (AU$4.02 billion). At the time of writing, XRP trades for US$1.30 (AU$1.85), up 3.33% in the past 24 hours, amid a sweeping Democratic midterm win.
While some feared that a Democratic win may be less bullish for crypto, Garlinghouse reminded his followers on X that pro-crypto candidates had been elected from both major parties.
Author
Aaron Feuerstein
Aaron Feuerstein is a freelance writer based in Melbourne. His focus is on decentralised finance and the regulatory space surrounding blockchain. He holds a Master's in Accounting. When he is not studying the latest legal case, he enjoys his time as a modest but eager hobby cook.
