Recent discussions within the XRP community have centered on whether Ripple’s new dollar-pegged digital asset, RLUSD, might push XRP into the background. Some argued that with a stable dollar-based option taking the spotlight in enterprise and internal payments, the need for the more volatile XRP could decline.
On chain data reveals a different story
Analysts at Evernorth examined this concern and, drawing on data from Dune Analytics, concluded that RLUSD has not replaced XRP. Instead, they found it acts as a complementary force supporting XRP’s position within the XRPL ecosystem. Evernorth describes itself as the largest independent XRP treasury.
Rather than RLUSD and XRP excluding each other within the same sphere, we observe a clear division of labor: RLUSD offers stable, dollar-based settlement, while XRP continues to serve as a bridge for transfers between various assets.
In April, only 17 percent of RLUSD’s volume was found on XRPL, while the majority operated on Ethereum. Latest figures, however, reveal a dramatic shift: that share now sits at 52 percent, indicating a strong migration of transaction flow toward XRPL over recent months.
Additionally, RLUSD’s share of transactions within XRPL has grown notably. In just under a year and a half, its volume rose from under 1 percent to 12 percent. According to analysts, this trend does not reflect a loss of interest in XRP. Instead, it suggests that investors and users are increasingly conducting dollar-based transactions actively around XRP within the XRPL environment.
Task sharing replaces rivalry between RLUSD and XRP
Analysts likened this structure to traditional currency markets. In global finance, the US dollar often serves as the common link for transactions across currencies. A similar setup, they suggest, is developing in Ripple’s ecosystem, where RLUSD acts as a stable benchmark and XRP facilitates rapid switching between assets.
Direct trades between RLUSD and XRP have totaled $900 million over the past six months. This robust growth marks the emergence of a deep dollar market on XRPL that did not exist before. Data also shows that RLUSD gives businesses a buffer against exchange rate volatility through a clear dollar value, while XRP remains integral when parties to a transaction need a bridge across different assets.
Network fees directly impact XRP supply
The technical dynamics of this relationship are also significant for XRP. Every transfer, transaction, or RLUSD/XRP order move on XRPL requires a network fee, and this fee is permanently burned, meaning the XRP is taken out of circulation.
Analysts point out a straightforward correlation: as digital dollar usage expands and RLUSD-linked transactions multiply, there is higher movement in the XRP pair, leading to more XRP being burned. This mechanism means RLUSD does not displace XRP but instead generates new liquidity atop it, reinforcing XRP’s native role in the network.
