Ripple’s ecosystem continues to experience significant growth, with both XRP and its RLUSD stablecoin making major strides in the crypto market.
Coinbase adds XRP futures to its platform
In a move that has excited many investors, Coinbase recently announced the introduction of XRP futures contracts on its US derivatives platform. These contracts, regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), provide traders with a compliant way to gain exposure to XRP without directly holding the asset.
With futures contracts, investors have the opportunity to speculate on future price movements or hedge their positions. Coinbase has made available two types of XRP futures contracts – standard contracts containing 10,000 XRP for institutional investors and “nano” contracts consisting of 500 XRP or approximately $1,000 each, tailored for retail traders. Both contracts utilize the MarketVector Coinbase XRP Index as a benchmark and settle in US dollars.
This listing on Coinbase’s derivatives platform positions XRP alongside other leading cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. The move comes at a time when institutional interest in XRP is on the rise, with the introduction of several XRP-based financial products in recent weeks.
RLUSD stablecoin integrated into Aave’s DeFi platform
Another significant development in Ripple’s ecosystem is the integration of its stablecoin, RLUSD, into Aave’s V3 Ethereum Core Market. Aave, the largest decentralized lending protocol by total value locked (TVL), now allows users to supply and borrow RLUSD. The lending pool has a limit of $50 million, while the borrowing pool is capped at $5 million.
This integration with Aave is a major milestone for RLUSD, given Aave’s prominent position in the DeFi space. Aave operates on 17 blockchain networks, including Ethereum, Sonic, Base, Optimism, Polygon, and Arbitrum, providing RLUSD with exposure to a diverse on-chain user base.
While the activity on Aave’s platform for RLUSD has been relatively modest, with only $241 supplied and a utilization rate of around 41%, this partnership lays the foundation for RLUSD to expand its presence within DeFi applications. Since its launch in December, RLUSD has seen impressive growth, reaching a market cap of $294 million driven by increased trading volume and new partnerships.