Ripple Positions RLUSD at the Center of Modern Payment Settlement
Ripple is moving to expand the real-world utility of its U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin, RLUSD, announcing a collaboration with Mastercard, WebBank, and Gemini to explore using the token to settle fiat credit card transactions on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). The initiative, revealed on Wednesday, marks one of the most notable attempts to integrate stablecoins into mainstream payment infrastructure, particularly within the systems of major financial institutions.
The spokesperson added that the integration will proceed only after all necessary oversight measures are cleared, especially given the involvement of a regulated U.S. bank.
Partnership Built on Earlier XRPL Credit Card Integration
This initiative comes after Ripple, Gemini, and WebBank introduced the Gemini Credit Card with XRP rewards earlier this year. Rather than traditional points or cashback incentives, the card issues XRP rewards for every purchase-an early demonstration of crypto-linked consumer finance.
With this latest plan, all versions of the Gemini Credit Card-including Bitcoin and Solana reward models-could eventually settle transactions using RLUSD on the XRPL, shifting the underlying settlement layer while leaving the user experience unchanged. The functionality would be fully invisible to consumers, who would continue swiping cards as usual while banks benefit from faster back-end financial movement.
Faster Liquidity and Real-Time Payment Rails
Ripple argues that RLUSD settlement on the XRPL could dramatically improve liquidity flows between payment partners.
Another spokesperson added that using RLUSD enables “near real-time movement of funds” improving visibility and liquidity management across networks.
In practical terms, the system would reduce reconciliation delays, eliminate intermediary financial hops, and strengthen institution-to-institution settlement efficiency-a long-standing limitation of the traditional credit card payment stack.
RLUSD’s Position in the Stablecoin Market
RLUSD launched last December on both Ethereum and the XRP Ledger, and has since grown to over $1 billion in market capitalization, according to DefiLlama-currently ranking as the 11th largest stablecoin.
The token is regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), and its reserves are primarily custodied by BNY Mellon, one of the largest and most traditional custodians in global finance.
In September, RLUSD was integrated into Securitize, enabling its use in institutional environments, particularly in tokenized money market fund transactions-a growing area of interest among asset managers and capital markets platforms.
Expanding Ripple’s Institutional Footprint
Alongside the stablecoin progress, Ripple also announced it raised $500 million at a $40 billion valuation, signaling continued confidence from investors in enterprise blockchain adoption.
Meanwhile, XRP, the network’s native token, is trading around $2.26, down 2.6% in the past 24 hours, reflecting broader market fluctuations.
Ripple’s alignment with Mastercard and U.S. banking partners suggests a strategic push to embed crypto into global transactional plumbing-not by replacing the system, but by quietly upgrading the parts under the hood.
