With the passing of the GENIUS Act (Guaranteeing U.S. Exchange Neutrality for Interconnected and Universal Stablecoins), stablecoins have firmly entered the mainstream financial conversation. As regulatory clarity increases and infrastructure matures, a growing number of companies are exploring stablecoin issuance. From banks and payment providers to consumer platforms and fintech firms, the appeal is obvious: faster settlement, lower transaction costs, and programmable financial tools. But as more stablecoins enter the market, it’s becoming clear that not all are built to the same standards. Some are purpose-built to operate at scale within the global financial system, while others are confined to niche use cases, closed ecosystems, or fragile designs. The difference matters.
In this new era, stablecoins are no longer just about disrupting traditional finance, they’re also becoming strategic tools for organizations looking to reduce costs, increase user engagement, or establish payment rails of their own. But this sudden influx of interest comes with a risk: misunderstanding what stablecoins actually are. Too often, we see stablecoins designed with limited scope, tied to loyalty strategies, in-app economies, or ecosystem monetization efforts, rather than as interoperable assets capable of broader financial integration. In reality, a stablecoin isn’t a marketing initiative. It is the cornerstone of the emerging digital financial infrastructure, demanding enduring responsibilities around trust, compliance, and scale.
What does Launching a Stablecoin Involve?
Launching a stablecoin means entering the realm of compliance, liquidity provisioning, risk management, and interoperability. Launching a stablecoin also calls for transparent and auditable reserves, alongside rigorous regulatory alignment, standards that are essential for earning trust and achieving lasting adoption. And it invites the scrutiny that comes with operating in the heart of global finance. These aren’t secondary concerns, they’re core to the benefits of stablecoins. Trust, after all, isn’t something you can retrofit later.
Many branded stablecoin initiatives, while innovative, fall short of this mark. They’re designed for use within a single ecosystem, creating closed financial loops that lack the liquidity, utility, and portability users expect. These tokens may work well for brand-specific rewards or purchases, but they rarely function outside of their native environment. The result is fragmentation: isolated islands of value that cannot interact with broader financial systems, stifling the very innovation they aim to foster.
Where there is Need there is Opportunity
In contrast, the most pressing opportunities for stablecoins exist not within walled gardens, but in places where financial infrastructure is weak or inefficient. In emerging markets, stablecoins can bridge access to the U.S. dollar, lower the cost of remittances, and accelerate settlement where traditional rails are too slow or costly. The benefits aren’t speculative, they’re tangible and measurable. This is where stablecoins can unlock real economic value, and where the need is greatest.
Stablecoins for the Real Economy
The design of a stablecoin is critical. To succeed, it must be interoperable across platforms and networks rather than tethered to a single brand. It should provide complete transparency around reserves and redemption, ensuring trust at every level. And it must deliver the scalability and reliability expected of core financial infrastructure. These are not optional features; they are prerequisites for mainstream adoption, long-term relevance, and the stability that the term “stablecoin” implies.
Ripple’s Stablecoin Approach
At Ripple, we built our stablecoin with these principles in mind. Ripple USD (RLUSD) is compliance-first, enterprise-grade, and purpose-built for cross-border payments. It’s fully backed 1:1 by U.S. dollar reserves, held at reputable U.S. banks, and issued in accordance with the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) regulatory framework, one of the most stringent stablecoin regimes globally. Issued on the XRP Ledger and Ethereum, RLUSD benefits from fast settlement, low fees, and native interoperability with other assets and applications.
More than that, it’s designed to operate as part of the broader global financial infrastructure, not as a siloed service. RLUSD is built to scale, serve a variety of stablecoin use cases, and meet the expectations of institutions and regulators alike.
Substance Over Hype
The GENIUS Act may open the door. But whether this new wave of branded stablecoins can move beyond novelty to truly reshape finance will depend on how seriously the architecture underpinning them is treated. At Ripple, we believe stablecoins should be built to scale, designed for trust, and made to serve the broader economy, not just individual brands.
