Eligible institutions can now hold Ripple USD (RLUSD) issued on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) through Standard Chartered’s digital asset custody service.
The bank announced on Oct. 12 that its institutional RLUSD custody offering had gone live, extending its banking infrastructure for digital assets. Custody refers to the safeguarding of assets on behalf of their owners, while the XRPL is a public blockchain designed to support financial transactions.
RLUSD is a dollar-backed stablecoin, a type of digital asset intended to maintain a stable value by tracking an asset such as the U.S. dollar. Jack McDonald, senior vice president of stablecoins at Ripple, was cited in the announcement, although no further statement was provided.
Standard Chartered is delivering the service through its Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) branch, which is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA). The arrangement combines the bank’s safekeeping infrastructure with Ripple’s stablecoin and forms part of a broader relationship involving institutional trading infrastructure operator LMAX Group.
A planned separate integration could allow RLUSD to be used as collateral for agreed LMAX products and services. Collateral is an asset pledged to secure a financial obligation.
Under the proposed collateral mirroring model, the value of eligible RLUSD holdings would be recognised at LMAX without institutions having to transfer the underlying tokens directly to the trading venue. Standard Chartered would retain custody of the assets, while LMAX would recognise their mirrored value for agreed products and services.
LMAX operates institutional trading infrastructure for foreign exchange and digital assets. The companies said the proposed structure could reduce operational risks linked to asset transfers and help institutions manage exposure to counterparties in financial transactions.
They also expect it to improve capital efficiency by allowing eligible holdings to support trading while remaining within the bank’s custody framework. Those benefits depend on the planned capabilities being implemented successfully.
The initiative follows a multiyear partnership between Ripple and LMAX that included $150 million in financing, announced Jan. 15. Ripple committed to support LMAX’s growth strategy, while LMAX planned to make RLUSD a core collateral asset. That agreement covered several trading products, while the new initiative would extend the bank’s collateral mirroring model to LMAX.
Standard Chartered established its digital asset custody business in the United Arab Emirates in September 2024. The initial service supported bitcoin and ether, with Brevan Howard Digital, the crypto and digital asset division of investment manager Brevan Howard, as its first customer. The addition of RLUSD widens the selection of assets institutions can safeguard through the bank.
Ripple also has separate arrangements for the custody of reserves backing RLUSD’s dollar value. In July 2025, it selected BNY as the stablecoin’s primary reserve custodian. Reserve custody covers the backing assets, whereas Standard Chartered’s new service safeguards eligible institutions’ RLUSD tokens issued on the XRP Ledger.
RLUSD is issued through Ripple subsidiary Standard Custody & Trust Company under a New York trust charter. Its framework includes supervision by the New York Department of Financial Services, segregated reserves and independent attestations examining reserve disclosures.
The planned collateral services remain subject to final documentation, successful testing, applicable laws and regulations, internal approvals and jurisdictional readiness. Further details will be announced as implementation progresses.
