TL;DR
- Ripple partners with Securitize to allow BUIDL and VBILL holders to mint RLUSD through a 24/7 smart contract.
- RLUSD, designed for institutional use, provides regulatory clarity, stability, and programmable liquidity for tokens backed by real-world assets.
- The integration of RLUSD into Securitize aims to expand use cases and strengthen the XRP Ledger ecosystem, despite its slow growth and $700 M market capitalization.
Ripple announced a partnership with Securitize to enable the minting of its native stablecoin, RLUSD, through a new smart contract that allows holders of BUIDL and VBILL tokens to exchange their assets for RLUSD.
These tokens wrap short-term Treasury funds managed by BlackRock and VanEck and previously had limited liquidity options. The contract will act as an “off-ramp” for these instruments, offering instant swaps in a 24/7 market.
BUIDL and VBILL maintain a nominal value of $1 and are held in a small number of wallets: 55 for BUIDL and four Ethereum addresses for VBILL. Both tokens are primarily used as DeFi collateral or reserves, and the new mechanism will allow institutional investors to access RLUSD without intermediaries.
Jack McDonald, Ripple’s Vice President of Stablecoins, stated that RLUSD is designed for institutional use, providing regulatory clarity, stability, and real utility, and that partnerships with trusted platforms like Securitize are essential to unlock liquidity and enterprise-grade use cases.
Ripple to Focus on RWA Tokenization and Stablecoins
Ripple plans to focus on tokenizing real-world assets (RWA) and stablecoins as its main growth drivers. Integrating RLUSD into the Securitize platform will open the door to new use cases and assets in the future and aims to expand the reach of the XRP Ledger ecosystem. Although RLUSD also exists on Ethereum, the partnership seeks to strengthen adoption on Ripple’s native network.
Despite these initiatives, RLUSD remains a slow-growing stablecoin with a market capitalization near $700 M, and XRP trades below $3 following the recent market downturn that erased altcoin gains. Carlos Domingo, CEO of Securitize, highlighted that the partnership will enable real-time settlement and programmable liquidity for tokenized and regulated investment products, bringing blockchain advantages to institutional finance.
Ripple aims to diversify beyond payments and DeFi, focusing on asset tokenization and stablecoin adoption. As real-world asset-backed tokens integrate into the company’s infrastructure, Ripple could solidify its presence in a segment that combines the stability of traditional assets with the efficiency and transparency of blockchain
