RLUSD Taps 20M Merchant Network, Aiming to Rival USDC

AEON, a Web3 payment platform, has teamed up with Ripple to integrate XRP and RLUSD. This partnership enables seamless RLUSD transactions for daily purchases via Telegram and popular wallets such as Bitget and TokenPocket.

AEON Partners Ripple, Integrates XRP and RLUSD

In the latest development, AEON has partnered with Ripple, adding to the platform’s growing list of strategic collaborations. With this alliance, the XRP token and RLUSD stablecoin are now available across online and offline payment environments. The official press release cited,

Users can seamlessly use RLUSD to pay for everyday purchases including dining, retail shopping, top-ups, and more, all via AEON Pay Telegram Mini App and dapp integrated in leading wallets like Bitget Wallet and TokenPocket. Initially, this will empower offline payments across 20 million merchants in Southeast Asia at 10000+ consumer brands like UNIQLO, Mcdonald’s, PizzaHut and Starbucks, with rollout plans targeting Africa, Latin America, and other emerging markets soon after.

This milestone follows comments from BitGo CEO Mike Belshe, who sharply criticised XRP while praising Ripple USD. As CoinGape reported, Belshe argued that Ripple failed to realise its vision of establishing XRP as a bridge currency, which ultimately led to the creation of the stablecoin.

WrathofKahneman, a prominent XRP figure, has also drawn the community’s attention towards this significant partnership. In his recent X post, WrathofKahneman wrote, “Aeon has partnered with Ripple and will now use XRP and RLUSD on their Web3 mobile payment platform.”

RLUSD Expands Reach, Integrated Across Millions of Businesses

Since the launch Ripple stablecoin RLUSD is gaining substantial attention across the financial industry, with growing interest from institutions and developers. Stablecoins’ increased acceptance has further boosted the demand for Ripple USD.

Commenting on the regulatory compliance and utility of Ripple’s stablecoin, AEON noted,

Ripple USD (RLUSD) is designed with trust, liquidity, and compliance at its core…Built by Ripple, a pioneer in enterprise blockchain with a global regulatory footprint, RLUSD is positioned to meet the needs of financial institutions, enterprises, and developers seeking secure and scalable digital dollar solutions.

Interestingly, Aeon’s integration of Ripple USD is just one of the many notable adoptions. Initially, Ripple integrated the stablecoin into its cross-border payments system, Ripple Payments, and also launched it on Kraken during its early days.

In addition, major platforms like Alchemy have also embraced RLUSD. As reported by CoinGape, Alchemy collaborated with Ripple to integrate the stablecoin into Alchemy Pay’s fiat on-ramp infrastructure. Major crypto exchanges like Bitget have also adopted the stablecoin, further adding to its momentum.

On the other hand, as of June 2025, USDC’s circulating supply exceeds $55 billion, and major commerce platforms like Shopify have begun enabling merchants worldwide to accept USDC payments. With this increasing adoption and activity, RLUSD’s market cap is now approaching $500 million. Now, Ripple USD is the 14th-largest stablecoin, boasting a market cap of $428.7 million.