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Ripple has partnered with Zug, Switzerland-based settlement firm Arf to supply short-term working capital denominated in the RLUSD stablecoin on the XRP Ledger, according to Crypto.news. Arf, which handles roughly $10 billion in annual settlement volume, announced the arrangement on Oct. 22, 2026.
The service is aimed at licensed cross-border payment companies — those handling remittances, card transactions and international transfers — that hold balances across several markets while funds move between them. Crypto.news reported that the RLUSD-based service is operating before XRPL’s proposed native lending protocol becomes available.
Also readCross River Bank adds Ripple's RLUSD to its core banking system
Key facts
- Arf reports approximately $10 billion in annual global settlement volume and says its capital turns over four times each month, per Crypto.news.
- The initial financing is typically repaid within one to five days as underlying payments settle, after which the capital can be re-lent.
- RLUSD serves as the currency for disbursements and repayments; XRP covers transaction fees and applicable account reserves.
- Arf has already built an implementation against the proposed XRPL lending specifications and will keep acting as a design partner.
- No financing commitment, RLUSD allocation or initial XRPL volume figure was disclosed in the announcement, according to Crypto.news.
What Arf and Ripple gain
Arf’s existing model connects traditional bank accounts with stablecoin treasury services, letting payment institutions obtain financing without running blockchain systems themselves. Credit decisions, borrower assessment and legal agreements stay off-chain; under the planned native model, the ledger would handle fund pooling and loan administration.
Arf co-founder and CEO Ali Erhat Nalbant framed the need in customer terms, saying payment companies require capital to keep money moving while they wait for funds to settle, and describing the Ripple tie-up as bringing stablecoin working capital to the XRP Ledger. RippleX head of product Jasmine Cooper, cited by Crypto.news, pointed to XRPL’s settlement capabilities and RLUSD’s dollar-denominated structure as suitable for firms needing temporary cross-border liquidity.
Also readRipple Taps Stripe's Privy to Bring XRPL Wallets to Apps
News.bitcoin reported additional detail on the proposed infrastructure, noting that current requirements also include a LendingProtocolV1_1 amendment that updates vault and lending rules. U.today described the arrangement as making RLUSD the source of liquidity while transfers settle.
Native lending still depends on validators
The larger phase — moving Arf’s financing onto XRPL’s own lending system — hinges on rule changes. XLS-65 would create Single Asset Vaults for pooled funds, and XLS-66 would establish the Lending Protocol that issues loans from those pools. Neither has reached the validator support needed for mainnet activation: Crypto.news reported that the LendingProtocol amendment had 19 supporting validators out of the 29 required, while the companion SingleAssetVault proposal had 21. Amendments must stay above the required 80% threshold for two consecutive weeks before they activate.
News.bitcoin noted that Arf would retain responsibility for credit assessments and working capital decisions outside the network even after the migration. The outlet also reported that other projects are working toward the same infrastructure: Soil, a lending platform run by asset manager Orqo Group, plans to pool RLUSD from institutional lenders, while Clearpool is building lending infrastructure and Cicada Partners will select borrowers for a separate RLUSD initiative.
Why it matters
Payment firms have traditionally relied on credit lines that can demand heavy collateral and take months to arrange, a poor fit for corridors whose liquidity needs shift quickly. Bringing RLUSD into settlement financing gives Ripple’s stablecoin a concrete commercial use tied to real payment flows rather than trading alone, and it gives XRPL a live institutional reference case while its lending amendments are still being voted on. The arrangement does not require participating companies to buy XRP, so the near-term effect on the asset is indirect, focused on fees and reserves.
What to watch
The validator tallies for XLS-65 and XLS-66 are the deciding variable: both must hold above the 80% threshold for two consecutive weeks before they activate on mainnet, and Arf has said it will migrate its financing activity once they do.
Sources: crypto.news, News.bitcoin, U.today
