Ripple’s RLUSD Expansion Fails to Push XRP’s Demand

It has been a big week for the payments giant, Ripple. From high-visibility billboards across Las Vegas to a wave of new RLSUD integrations, the company is clearly accelerating its global presence. But these major milestones haven’t reflected on the XRP price. The token continues to lag, trading 62% below its 2025 peak.

It is worth noting that much of the current buzz is centred around Ripple’s stablecoin, RLUSD. In the last 24 hours, the RLUSD stablecoin has gone live on OKX, entered institutional trading flows on Bullish, and expanded into Ethereum L2 ecosystems. This underscores that RLUSD is becoming central to Ripple’s strategy. But does this indicate that the company is sidelining XRP?

Beneath the headlines, there’s a growing disconnect. A large share of RLUSD is now on Ethereum. Much of its usage bypasses XRP entirely. This shift is prompting fresh debate over whether XRP is still the main value driver.

 Unveiling Ripple’s RLUSD Expansion Across Chains

In just a couple of days, Ripple has successfully expanded RLUSD, its fiat-backed stablecoin, into multiple platforms. While this looks appealing for XRP, a closer look unveils that the stablecoin is expanding in ways that are largely independent of XRP.

RLUSD Goes Live on OKX

One of the biggest updates was from OKX, a prominent crypto exchange. OKX listed RLUSD across more than 280 trading pairs. This is a major liquidity boost on paper. It puts the stablecoin in front of a massive global user base and allows both retail and institutional traders to access it.

Here, what’s more noteworthy is its off-chain execution. OKX trades on RLUSD can be done within its centralised order book. This means that they do not interact directly with the XRP Ledger or XRP.

Institutional Use Expands Via Bullish

Another key development is RLUSD’s integration into institutional trading flows. Through Bullish, Ripple Prime clients can now use RLUSD as collateral to trade Bitcoin options. This is a major step towards placing RLUSD as a serious financial instrument. The post, released on April 29, read,

The development also signals growing institutional adoption. By enabling the stablecoin to function as collateral, Ripple is placing it directly into a high-value trading environment.

Here, too, XRP is not part of the process. The options are settled in the stablecoin, and the collateral is posted in the same. XRP doesn’t play a role in margin, settlement, or execution.

RLUSD Positioned as a SWIFT Alternative

A key milestone that Reece Merrick, the Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa, has shared is the use of RLUSD as an alternative to SWIFT. It is worth noting that he has positioned the stablecoin, not XRP, as the asset that companies will consider for global payments.

His message comes amid Ripple’s expansion in the UAE, opening a new Middle East and Africa regional headquarters at the Dubai International Financial Centre. Merrick also highlighted the company’s ongoing collaboration with DIFC.

It is worth noting that Ripple has become the first blockchain payments provider to receive a license from the Dubai Financial Services Authority. Its stablecoin has been recognized as an approved crypto token within the DIFC.

Merrick noted,

Expansion into Ethereum L2s

Perhaps the most significant development is RLUSD’s expansion beyond XRPL into Ethereum’s L2 spaces. Ripple has confirmed plans to extend RLUSD to networks like Base, Optimism, Ink, and Unichain via Wormhole’s cross-chain infrastructure.

Ethereum L2s offer large user bases, active DeFi ecosystems, and strong developer activity. By placing RLUSD on these chains, Ripple is tapping into that liquidity and usage.

But these networks do not rely on XRP. Minting and transferring RLUSD on Ethereum L2 does not require interaction with the XRPL. As a result, every new integration in this space increases the stablecoin’s footprint- not XRP.

The numbers already reflect this shift. Around 82% of the Ripple stablecoin supply is now on Ethereum. This is significantly high compared to the 18% on RLUSD.

Why RLUSD Growth Isn’t Translating Into XRP Demand?

The main reason RLUSD growth isn’t boosting the XRP demand is based on the way it is used. Most activity of the stablecoin happens on centralized platforms like OKX, where trades are done off-chain. This eliminates the need for XRP in each transaction. The token is needed only when the stablecoin is moved in or out through the XRP Ledger.

At the same time, RLUSD’s major presence on Ethereum is also another major reason. While these systems do not rely on XRP, the stablecoin activity goes on independently.

Interestingly, the payments company is investing heavily to boost the stablecoin’s growth. The team is increasingly positioning it as a major player in the ecosystem. But the Ripple coin is not seeing the same impact. The XRP price is down by 62% from its 2025 peak. The broader momentum has also slowed.

Can the Stablecoin Growth Be a Positive Catalyst for XRP?

At the present moment, the growth of the Ripple stablecoin is not a driver of the XRP token. But can it act as a positive catalyst? Of course, yes. But it needs to change the way the stablecoin is used.

Currently, most of the activity surrounding the stable token happens outside the XRP Ledger. This limits the cryptocurrency’s role. If the activity is moved to XRPL, it could increase the role of XRP and thus push its demand.

The supply of the stablecoin also plays a key role. The 82% supply on Ethereum is again limiting the position of XRPL and the altcoin. For the altcoin to benefit, a balance needs to be kept, with more stablecoins being issued on the XRP Ledger.