Major financial institutions including BlackRock, Mastercard, and Franklin Templeton are actively testing the XRP Ledger (XRPL) for stablecoin-based payments and settlement, signaling a significant shift toward blockchain infrastructure adoption. The activity was confirmed by Odelia Torteman during a Digital Assets Forum event in London, emphasizing that these firms view the network as infrastructure rather than a trading venue.
The tests focus on using RLUSD stablecoin on-chain for payments, lending, and settlement. Torteman described XRP as a bridge asset for transferring value across different assets, highlighting the ledger's built-in automated market maker, decentralized exchange, and compliance-focused trust lines. Notably, Mastercard partnered with Gemini and Ripple last November to test RLUSD settlement for card payments, demonstrating how regulated stablecoins can process transactions on a public blockchain.
Tokenization deals are also driving broader usage. Ripple worked with Securitize to support conversions into RLUSD for BlackRock's BUIDL fund and VanEck's VBILL fund, enabling continuous liquidity through smart contracts. Additionally, Franklin Templeton and DBS Bank collaborated with Ripple on tokenized lending and trading solutions, combining money market funds with stablecoin settlement to improve liquidity and execution.
Meanwhile, XRP market activity has increased alongside these developments, with the token gaining nearly 10% over the past week and briefly moving above $1.50. Data showed about $55 million in ETF inflows during the same period. However, Torteman emphasized that institutional interest centers on infrastructure capabilities rather than trading.
Separately, reports have surfaced about Russia's early tests of Ripple technology for cross-border payments. In 2018, the Bank of Russia conducted trials on the Ripple platform in its Novosibirsk innovation laboratory, evaluating its potential for cross-border settlements. The results suggested it could serve as a foundation for such systems pending resolution of organizational, legal, and technical barriers. JPMorgan Chase has also reportedly highlighted Ripple for its speed, low cost, and liquidity advantages in a report shared with Russian institutions.
Furthermore, Ripple's strategic shift toward vertical integration across the financial stack includes 2025 acquisitions of Hidden Road (prime brokerage with $3 trillion in annual clearing), GTreasury (treasury management with $13 trillion in payments volume), and Rail (stablecoin payments infrastructure). These moves create end-to-end control over custody, liquidity, and settlement, positioning Ripple as an institutional financial stack provider.
Additionally, Coinbase is set to introduce a Trade at Settlement (TAS) feature for XRP futures on May 1, 2026, allowing institutional participants to execute block trades at the official settlement price and reducing exposure to intraday volatility.
