Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of stablecoin issuer Circle, has welcomed Ripple’s entrance into the market.
Earlier today, crypto firm Ripple revealed plans to launch a stablecoin that would be 100% backed by US dollar deposits, government bonds, and cash equivalents.
In response, Allaire said it was “encouraging to see more companies taking a compliance-first approach to building on-chain dollars.”
Circle is the issuer of USD Coin (USDC), the second-largest stablecoin by market capitalization. The firm’s asset is enjoying a renaissance, emerging as the best-performing among major stablecoins during the year’s first quarter.
Meanwhile, Tether’s USDT remains the dominant stablecoin, controlling roughly 70% of the market, with its $104 billion capitalization.
Why Ripple wants to issue a stablecoin
Ripple said it would launch a dollar-pegged stablecoin on XRP Ledger and Ethereum later this year.
According to the firm, the sector is expected to soar past $2.8 trillion by 2028, which means a clear demand for such assets. It said:
“Stablecoins serve as a pivotal entry point to DeFi, and introducing a trusted, enterprise-grade stablecoin to the XRPLedger will generate more use cases, liquidity, and opportunities for developers and users alike.”
The crypto company furthered that its yet-to-be-named stablecoin would be pivotal in extending its reach into institutional and DeFi realms, diversifying use cases, and enhancing payments infrastructure.
Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple’s CEO, described the move as a natural step for the company, considering its track record in the crypto industry. He added that the move would also help to drive XRPL use cases, liquidity, and other opportunities for developers and users.
Similarly, Monica Long, Ripple’s President, remarked:
“Issuing our stablecoin on the XRP Ledger and Ethereum will serve as a pivotal entry point to unlock new opportunities for institutional and DeFi use cases across multiple ecosystems.”
Following the news, XRP bucked its current downward trend to jump by more than 4%. The digital asset’s price spiked to $0.61 before retracing to $0.5978 as of press time, according to CryptoSlate’s data.
