Ripple has launched its USD-pegged stablecoin, RLUSD, available to institutions in Africa through partnerships with Chipper Cash, VALR, and Yellow Card.
RLUSD was created for utility and compliance, backed by Ripple’s expertise in working with crypto and TradFi. Since its rollout in late 2024, the stablecoin has experienced global adoption, gaining over USD 700 million in market capitalisation, reflecting the need for a compliance-first USD-backed digital currency.
RLUSD use cases
It is used in enterprise financial applications, including payments, tokenisation, and collateral in crypto and traditional trading. Ripple saw the demand for RLUSD from its customers globally, and it began distribution in Africa through local partners. The stablecoin is also used in Ripple Payments, extending the portfolio of stablecoins available on the company’s cross-border payments solution.
Chipper Cash partnered with Ripple to support faster, cheaper, and more efficient cross-border payments into Africa. The company believes that RLUSD will drive institutional use of blockchain technology across the region and other key markets. Likewise, VALR mentioned that the listing of the new stablecoin on its platform is a key step in its strategy to support trusted options that serve the evolving demands of users seeking reliable digital USD for multiple use cases. Additionally, the listing on Yellow Card reflects the payment infrastructure’s commitment to catering its services to customer needs and offering a compliant stablecoin for secure cross-border and treasury management.
RLUSD can be used for facilitating instant settlement for international transfers, accessing liquidity for remittance and treasury operations, integrating with DeFi protocols, and bridging the gap between fiat and the crypto ecosystem, as well as delivering collateralisation for trading tokenised assets like commodities, securities, and treasuries onchain.
In addition to its launch in Africa, the stablecoin is being used to support extreme weather event relief pilot projects in Kenya. In the first project, it serves as drought insurance for farmers, held in escrow and released via smart contracts if satellite data confirms a drought is likely to occur. A second pilot project will utilise RLUSD to back a parametric rainfall insurance solution, delivering similar support during periods of extreme rainfall.
