Ripple, Clearpool and Cicada Partners are building an institutional lending market on the XRP Ledger using RLUSD as the credit asset. The initiative aims to move DeFi yield away from trading-driven strategies and toward loans backed by real business demand.
Key Takeaways
Clearpool and Cicada are building RLUSD lending on XRPL after $930M+ in Clearpool loans.Ripple’s RLUSD model targets the 98% of DeFi yield still driven by market mechanisms.XRPL mainnet launch depends on XLS-65 and XLS-66 winning governance approval.Ripple is backing a new institutional credit initiative on the XRP Ledger that will let fintechs, payment companies and crypto businesses borrow RLUSD against real working-capital needs.
The new model is intended to provide a more traditional source of return: interest paid by operating companies.
XRPL Lending Push Targets Real-World BorrowersClearpool, which says it has facilitated more than $930 million in institutional loans since 2021, will use XRPL’s proposed Lending Protocol and Single Asset Vault architecture.
Cicada, which has underwritten more than $860 million, will act as fund general partner and credit pool manager. Its role includes sourcing borrowers, setting covenants, and monitoring credit quality.
Ripple will supply capital and settlement infrastructure, but it will not act as a backstop.
For lenders, returns would come from borrower interest rather than crypto market incentives. For borrowers, the system offers another source of institutional capital while keeping settlement onchain.
Clearpool is currently testing the integration on Devnet. The Lending Protocol (XLS-66) and Single Asset Vaults (XLS-65) are still going through the network’s amendment voting process.
If activated, the features would allow loan issuance, repayments, and vault accounting to run natively on XRPL rather than through external smart contracts.
