Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said XRP could be an effective bridge asset for certain cross-border payment transactions, while stablecoins may be better suited to other customer requirements. The comments resurfaced this week, although they were originally delivered on January 22.
Garlinghouse made the statements during Faena Rose’s January 22 discussion, The Transformative Power of Crypto Assets, where he spoke about cross-border payments and the evolution of digital financial infrastructure. Excerpts from the conversation began circulating again on social media on September 24, more than eight months after the original discussion.
His comments focused on the needs of individual payment use cases rather than presenting one asset as universally superior. Garlinghouse said XRP may not be the appropriate choice for every transaction and rejected the idea that Ripple’s payment strategy should rely exclusively on XRP. He noted that stablecoins could provide a more suitable solution for particular customer needs. He also pushed back against being described as an XRP maximalist, arguing that the practical usefulness of a technology should determine its adoption.
Ripple Payments already reflects this approach through support for several settlement options. Depending on a customer’s requirements and the regulatory environment in a particular market, transactions can be settled using RLUSD, USDC, USDT, or fiat currencies. Ripple says its settlement infrastructure is not dependent on a single token issuer, which allows additional stablecoins to be incorporated without requiring the underlying payment system to be rebuilt.
According to Ripple, its payment infrastructure supports collections, digital-asset conversion, and payouts across more than 60 markets and has processed more than $100 billion in payment volume.
XRP and RLUSD occupy separate roles within that system. XRP is a freely traded cryptocurrency whose price fluctuates according to market conditions. Ripple’s documentation describes XRP as the native asset of the XRP Ledger and a bridge currency intended to facilitate fast and low-cost international transactions.
That function forms the basis of Ripple’s On-Demand Liquidity model. Under the system, a payment’s source currency can be converted into XRP, transferred between markets, and then converted into the recipient currency. The process can reduce the requirement for institutions to maintain pre-funded nostro accounts.
RLUSD, meanwhile, is structured as a dollar-backed stablecoin. Ripple says it is intended for payments, remittances, treasury management, and settlement, with reserves consisting of cash deposits, U.S. Treasuries, and cash equivalents. The stablecoin is backed on a 1:1 basis and can be redeemed for U.S. dollars.
The two assets therefore have different risk profiles. XRP’s market value can rise or fall, while RLUSD is designed to remain around $1. That price stability can be relevant for corporate treasurers processing predictable payment and settlement volumes who want to avoid exposure to cryptocurrency price movements.
The distinction also reflects a broader development in the payments industry, where stablecoins are increasingly being used as part of payment infrastructure across different networks and financial applications.
Garlinghouse’s January remarks also preceded the Senate’s September 15 cloture vote on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act. The legislation failed to advance after receiving 49 votes in favor and 50 against, below the 60 votes required to proceed with H.R. 3633. Ripple called the result a missed opportunity and reiterated that the vote did not change its position regarding XRP’s regulatory status, pointing to the SEC and CFTC’s March 2026 interpretation classifying XRP as a digital commodity.
The regulatory debate is distinct from Ripple’s decision to use different settlement assets, but it provides context for the resurfaced footage. At the time of the January discussion, Garlinghouse was describing a payments model that could use different assets depending on customer requirements. The comments were not made in response to the later Senate vote or intended to signal a shift away from XRP.
For market participants, the resurfaced remarks highlight that Ripple’s multi-asset payments strategy has been reflected in its infrastructure for some time. Rather than representing a new change in direction, the comments offer additional context on how Ripple views XRP, stablecoins, and other settlement options within its broader payments network.
