Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse addressed the ongoing debate over the potential impact of Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin on XRP’s future, asserting that both assets are complementary rather than competitive.
On Nov. 3, Brad Garlinghouse offered his view in response to a comprehensive X post from a notable member of the XRP Ledger community named Vet, who outlined the key differences between the two assets associated with Ripple.
“Well said, Vet. Complementary, not competitive,” the Ripple chief executive tweeted.
The brief statement comes amid pushback as some XRP holders are increasingly concerned that Ripple’s aggressive foray into the stablecoin market may negatively impact demand for XRP in the future.
XRP vs. RLUSD differences
As part of his viral post, Vet explained that the key difference between the two assets revolves around the purposes they serve on the XRP Ledger.
“RLUSD is optional. XRP isn’t,” the commentator explained.
As the XRP Ledger’s native currency, XRP is essential for the core functions of the network. First, every account must have an XRP reserve. Second, transaction fees are paid in XRP.
RLUSD, on the other hand, is a dollar-denominated stablecoin issued by Ripple’s regulated stablecoin business. The key difference is that, unlike XRP, the value of RLUSD is supposed to remain stable at roughly $1.
Another key difference lies in control over the assets.
Ripple has the ability to freeze RLUSD under certain conditions, for example, to meet legal obligations. There is no central entity that can freeze XRP, the native cryptocurrency, on the ledger.
According to Vet, another key advantage of XRP is its privileged status on the XRP Ledger’s DEX.
The XRP Ledger has an automatic bridging function. In this way, if it makes sense to trade between currencies through XRP for a better exchange rate, trades can be automatically routed through XRP.
This is why XRP is so valuable for liquidity providers and market makers as an intermediary asset.
On the other hand, RLUSD would be much more suitable in cases where price stability is important, for example, for payroll, invoicing, corporate payments, etc.
At the same time, some XRP investors are worried that one day RLUSD may effectively replace XRP for some payment use cases.
The crucial question is this: If you can send a dollar-denominated stablecoin directly, why would you need to use an intermediary like XRP?
It’s also worth noting that RLUSD isn’t exclusive to the XRP Ledger. In fact, RLUSD also works on Ethereum and other supported blockchains. So increasing demand for RLUSD doesn’t necessarily lead to more use of the XRP Ledger.
And even if we’re seeing more RLUSD transactions on the XRP Ledger, this doesn’t automatically mean that increased demand for XRP to pay transaction fees necessarily guarantees a significant price surge for the cryptocurrency.
Brad Garlinghouse recently vowed never to leave XRP behind
It’s not the first time Garlinghouse has been forced to comment on Ripple’s changing priorities.
During Ripple’s Swell 2026 conference in New York on Oct. 28, Ripple’s CEO directly addressed rumors that Ripple is becoming increasingly focused on RLUSD rather than XRP.
“We will never give up on XRP,” Garlinghouse said.
