Approval has been granted for Ripple’s dollar-backed stablecoin, RLUSD, which allows licensed firms in Abu Dhabi’s international financial zone to use it.
The approval came from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority overseeing the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), a free zone on Al Maryah and Al Reem Islands.
Licensed entities may employ RLUSD for approved operations, provided they comply with the rules on reserve control and required disclosures.
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RLUSD began in October 2024 under a limited-purpose trust charter granted by the New York Department of Financial Services.
By March, full regulatory approval arrived, which enabled crypto-based cross-border payment services in the Dubai International Financial Centre. In June, that same regulator also permitted RLUSD for regulated activities such as treasury management and payments within the DIFC.
A sweeping federal decree, Federal Decree Law No. 6 of 2025, came into force as of September. It requires that protocols, platforms, infrastructure providers, and services involved in payments, lending, custody, exchanges, or investing obtain a license from the Central Bank of the UAE by September 2026.
Jack McDonald, Ripple’s senior vice president of stablecoins, noted that, with a market cap exceeding $1 billion and growing adoption across use cases such as collateral and payments, RLUSD is becoming a leading USD stablecoin for major institutions.
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