Standard Chartered launches custody for Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin in Dubai
In brief
- Standard Chartered announced custody for Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin on Oct. 12.
- Eligible institutional clients can hold XRPL-issued RLUSD through the bank's DFSA-regulated DIFC branch.
- The planned LMAX collateral link has no launch date and still needs approvals.
- RLUSD added $765.3 million in market cap in Q3, according to RWA Foundation data.
- Custody volumes and participating clients have not been disclosed by the bank.
How the LMAX link would work
Under the proposed model, Standard Chartered would mirror the value of eligible RLUSD holdings to LMAX. Clients could then back trading positions on the venue without moving any tokens to it.
That's the plan. It isn't live yet.
The companies haven't said when the collateral integration will become operational, and implementation still depends on final documentation, technical testing, regulatory requirements and internal approvals.
Ripple's push to use RLUSD as trading collateral gained momentum in January, when Ripple and LMAX announced a multiyear partnership to integrate RLUSD across LMAX's infrastructure. Ripple committed $150 million in financing to support LMAX's expansion. The deal targets RLUSD adoption across spot crypto trading, perpetual futures, CFDs and other institutional products.
A $765 million quarter
The custody launch follows a quarter in which only one stablecoin added more market value in dollar terms than RLUSD. According to RWA Foundation data cited by CryptoSlate, Ripple recorded the second-largest increase in stablecoin market capitalization in the third quarter, adding $765.3 million over 90 days. Circle's USDC added more ($915 million), and United Stables came third at $474.2 million.
DeFiLlama data puts RLUSD's total circulating supply at about $2.4 billion. Roughly $1.14 billion of that is on XRPL and $1.3 billion is on Ethereum.
What we don't know yet
Waqar Chaudry, Standard Chartered's global head of digital assets in Securities Services, said institutional investors increasingly want to take part in digital asset markets without giving up on asset safeguarding or risk management.
The bank hasn't disclosed how much RLUSD it holds in custody, and it hasn't named the clients taking part. CryptoSlate wrote that the setup could reduce counterparty exposure and the operational risk of moving assets between custodians and exchanges. It also wrote that the commercial impact will depend on how widely institutions adopt the arrangement (and which LMAX products end up accepting the stablecoin).
Frequently asked questions
How would RLUSD work as collateral on LMAX?
Under the proposed model, Standard Chartered would mirror the value of eligible RLUSD holdings to LMAX. Clients could then support trading positions on the venue without transferring the tokens, which would stay in custody with the bank.
Is the Standard Chartered and LMAX collateral link live?
No. The companies haven't announced when the collateral integration will become operational. Implementation still depends on final documentation, technical testing, regulatory requirements and internal approvals.
How much did RLUSD grow in the third quarter?
According to RWA Foundation data, Ripple added $765.3 million in stablecoin market capitalization over 90 days in Q3, the second-largest increase after Circle's USDC at $915 million. DeFiLlama puts RLUSD's total circulating supply at about $2.4 billion.
