Ripple Pushes RLUSD for Institutional Payments as BlackRock Watches

Ripple news today is once again in the spotlight. As fresh buzz spreads across crypto social media about its stablecoin RLUSD and possible ties with BlackRock. On January 13, Ripple community accounts on X claimed that Ripple is moving RLUSD deeper into institutional finance. 

🚨 JUST IN: #Ripple Advances $RLUSD for Institutional Settlement and Payments as Market Watches BlackRock Involvement. pic.twitter.com/e601BymMHi

— RippleXity (@RippleXity) January 13, 2026

Some posts even suggested that BlackRock is now using RLUSD as collateral for real time blockchain settlements. Ripple and BlackRock together quickly caught attention in the XRP community. While the hype is strong the full story is more complex.

What Is RLUSD and Why It Matters

Ripple designed RLUSD as a USD backed stablecoin for serious financial use rather than meme trading. The company backs the stablecoin 1:1 with U.S. dollars and short term U.S. Treasury assets. It runs under strict rules. Also, it is approved by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). Ripple launched RLUSD to support fast payments, settlements and tokenized assets. 

By late 2025, RLUSD had already crossed a $1 billion market cap. It runs on the XRP Ledger and Ethereum. Ripple built it mainly for banks, funds and payment firms which need fast and clean settlement tools. In fact, in simple terms, RLUSD is Ripple’s bridge between traditional finance and blockchain.

The Real Link Between Ripple and BlackRock

There is a real connection between Ripple and BlackRock. But not exactly in the way some viral posts suggest, back in September 2025 Ripple partnered with Securitize, a major tokenization firm. Through this partnership, RLUSD became a settlement tool for BlackRock’s tokenized fund called BUIDL. Specifically, BUIDL is BlackRock’s blockchain based U.S. Treasury fund.Furthermore, it runs on-chain and lets investors hold treasury assets as digital tokens.

With RLUSD, investors can now swap BUIDL shares for dollars instantly 24/7. In fact, this setup allows smooth off-ramping from tokenized funds into stable dollars. As a result, it improves liquidity and makes on-chain finance more practical for institutions. But this doesn’t mean BlackRock is using RLUSD as full collateral across its entire business. It is mainly a settlement tool for tokenized funds.

Why Institutions Are Watching

Big finance is moving fast into tokenized assets. Banks and funds want faster settlement, lower costs and real time liquidity. RLUSD fits that need. It can move across blockchains. It follows strict rules. Additionally, it plugs into tokenized funds and payments. If more institutions adopt it in 2026, RLUSD could become a key tool in on-chain finance. 

Currently, the Ripple news today shows that the investors are waiting for official updates. But one thing is clear: Ripple is building for the future of institutional crypto.