Ripple Labs, the San Francisco-based payments company, announced its exchange partners for the launch of a new USD-pegged stablecoin called RLUSD. The announcement was made during Ripple’s annual conference, Ripple Swell 2024, marking a significant step for the stablecoin project.

Key Exchange Partners

Among the named partners are major exchanges such as MoonPay, Bitso, Bitstamp, Uphold, Independent Reserve, Bullish, and CoinMENA. These exchanges will provide users and institutions access to RLUSD upon approval from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). Ripple’s decision to collaborate with a range of global exchanges is expected to increase the adoption and depth of the stablecoin. In addition to exchange support, other major market makers like Keyrock and B2C2 are also anticipated to offer liquidity to RLUSD.

Testing Phase and Future Plans

RLUSD is currently in the private beta testing phase, deployed on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) and Ethereum, with the stablecoin already minted on both. Although the private beta has been running for more than two months, Ripple has not yet announced the exact mainnet launch date. However, Ripple's CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, hinted at the Korea Blockchain Week event that the stablecoin could launch within weeks, possibly by the end of 2024.

Ripple's Advisory Board

Ripple has also established an advisory board to facilitate RLUSD's market entry. The board includes notable financial industry figures such as Chris Larsen, Ripple's Chairman; David Ruth, former executive of JPMorgan; and Sheila Bair, former chair of the FDIC. This advisory team is expected to play a crucial role in ensuring the stablecoin's compliance with regulatory requirements and its integration into the global financial system. The stablecoin launch follows Ripple's legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which resulted in a $125 million fine. However, these legal issues do not seem to have affected Ripple’s updates on RLUSD in recent times. Following the announcement, XRP’s price increased by approximately 1% to $0.5429, with trading volume also on the rise.

The launch of Ripple's USD-pegged stablecoin RLUSD garners attention from global exchanges and influential financial figures. It is expected to enhance international payments, bolstering the role of stablecoins in the financial industry.