Ripple Backs RLUSD Credit Fund on XRP Ledger
The fund uses RLUSD for working capital loans to fintech and payments companies, while Clearpool and Cicada test the credit structure on the XRP Ledger.
Key Takeaways
- Ripple, together with Clearpool and Cicada Partners, is backing an institutional credit fund that lends RLUSD to fintech and payments companies on the XRP Ledger.
- The fund uses RLUSD as the lending currency; Ripple is investing alongside it, while Cicada manages borrowers and credit risk and Clearpool provides the infrastructure.
- The product is not live on mainchain yet; XLS-66 and XLS-65 are still in development, while XRP recently traded around $1.30.
Ripple is backing a new institutional credit fund that wants to lend its RLUSD stablecoin to fintech and payments companies on the XRP Ledger. The initiative is being set up with lending platform Clearpool and credit manager Cicada Partners, while XRP itself rose sharply over the past week and was trading around $1.30 (€1.11).
RLUSD as the Lending Currency
The fund is meant to provide working capital loans in RLUSD, according to a shared release. Cicada Partners looks for borrowers, sets the loan terms, and monitors credit risk. Clearpool is building the infrastructure used to set up and manage the lending pools, while Ripple is contributing capital as an investor alongside other institutions.
The setup fits RLUSD's role as a dollar stablecoin. The token is fully backed by a segregated reserve of cash and cash equivalents and can be redeemed for $1 per token. For Ripple, that could matter because borrowers receive RLUSD and also repay in RLUSD.
Not Live on Mainchain Yet
The fund is not running on the XRP Ledger mainchain yet. Clearpool is testing the connection on a development network, while the two functions that power the product are still going through the amendment process. Those are XLS-66, a lending protocol, and XLS-65, the so-called single asset vaults.
Those two pieces are needed for the fund to work. The lending protocol handles issuing and repaying loans directly on the ledger. The vault system pools money from multiple lenders under one manager, in this case Cicada.
Cicada says it has accepted more than $860 million (€736 million) in credit. Clearpool says it has facilitated more than $930 million (€796 million) in institutional loans since 2021. Ripple is participating as a limited partner on the same terms as other investors and is not guaranteeing losses.
Why This Matters for XRP
For European crypto readers, the main takeaway is that this shows how stablecoins and onchain credit products are moving closer together. XRP itself is not being lent out, but it is being used for transaction fees and the ledger's minimum balance requirements. XRP's price jump came alongside a broader rally in the crypto market, where several major tokens moved higher as well.
That fits Ripple's broader push for institutional uses of the network. In a separate piece about onchain lending on the XRP Ledger, it was already clear that credit features are an important part of that strategy.
