The RLUSD Coinbase rollout is here: Ripple’s regulated stablecoin is now live across Coinbase Exchange, Coinbase Prime and the retail app, with users converting dollars – and other supported USD stablecoins – into RLUSD at a flat 1:1 rate. The announcement landed October 28 on stage at Ripple Swell in New York, where Ripple’s Jack McDonald sat down with Coinbase Institutional co-CEO Brett Tejpaul to spell out the deal.
What launch day actually includes
RLUSD trading and transfers are live today on the XRP Ledger, Base and Ethereum for retail and institutional clients in supported regions. Ripple is also committed to providing liquidity on Base to keep conversions smooth on that network. A second wave – Coinbase Global Exchange availability and RLUSD as collateral – is announced but not yet switched on, so don’t plan your margin calls around it just yet.
Why Coinbase wanted another stablecoin
Coinbase has USDC, so this isn’t about filling a gap on the shelf. It’s about the institutional aisle. McDonald’s framing was blunt: appetite for compliant, high-quality stablecoins is there – the problem is getting them onto platforms institutions already trust. Coinbase, meanwhile, keeps repeating its “everything exchange” line and noting that seven of the ten largest US banks have tested stablecoins or tokenized deposits for settlement.
RLUSD’s quick rise
Launched in December 2024, RLUSD has grown past a $2.4 billion market cap and now carries reserves of dollar deposits and short-term US instruments. The Coinbase deal follows a similar partnership with Robinhood announced days earlier – Ripple is clearly done being the stablecoin people only know from XRP forums.
The bottom line
For UAE and global institutions watching the regulated-stablecoin race, the RLUSD Coinbase listing is a distribution win: the third-largest US exchange now sits between Ripple’s treasury-grade token and its customer base. Robinhood first, Coinbase next – watch for the collateral layer to close the loop.
Related reading: Standard Chartered launches RLUSD custody in Dubai.
