Ripple Backs RLUSD Credit Fund for Institutional Lending on XRP Ledger

Ripple is supporting a new institutional credit fund designed to provide working-capital loans in RLUSD, its U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin, to fintech and payments companies through the XRP Ledger (XRPL).

The initiative brings together Ripple, institutional lending platform Clearpool, and credit manager Cicada Partners. Cicada will identify borrowers, structure loan terms, and oversee credit risk, while Clearpool develops the infrastructure for creating and managing lending pools. Ripple will participate as an investor alongside other institutional participants.

The size of the credit fund and Ripple's financial commitment have not been disclosed.

The RLUSD lending product is not yet available on the XRPL mainnet. Clearpool is currently testing the integration on a development network, while two proposed XRPL features required for the system—XLS-66, a native lending protocol, and XLS-65, which introduces single-asset vaults—remain subject to the network's amendment approval process.

Once implemented, XLS-66 would allow loans to be issued and repaid directly on the XRP Ledger. Meanwhile, XLS-65 would enable multiple lenders to pool capital under a designated manager, with Cicada expected to oversee the allocation of funds.

Cicada said it has underwritten more than $860 million in credit and will serve as both the fund's general partner and credit-pool manager. Clearpool, meanwhile, says it has facilitated more than $930 million in institutional loans since 2021.

Ripple will participate as a limited partner under the same terms as other investors and will not guarantee potential losses. Borrowers will receive RLUSD and repay their loans in the same stablecoin, potentially increasing demand for RLUSD while expanding institutional lending activity on XRPL.

XRP itself will not be used as the loan asset. Instead, the token will continue to support transaction fees and required account reserves on the network.

The announcement comes as XRP has surged nearly 20% in 24 hours to around $1.30, extending its weekly gain to approximately 30% amid a broader cryptocurrency market rally.