TL;DR
- One of the first companies aiming to build an XRP strategic reserve has opted to use RLUSD payments for its electric vehicle subsidiary instead of Ripple’s native non-stablecoin token.
- The firm said the stablecoin option will speed up transactions and reduce costs at the same time.
VivoPower International PLC announced the move on September 8, indicating that its EV subsidiary – Tembo e-LV – has started to accept payments in Ripple’s stablecoin, RLUSD, which launched less than a year ago.
Tembo describes itself as a company seeking practical solutions to real-life challenges that affect conventional international wire transfers, which include longer waiting periods and high transaction costs.
The statement reads that RLUSD will allow for international wire transfers to be completed “almost instantaneously” at a “fraction of the cost” of conventional ones. The stablecoin also provides security to users as it’s pegged 1:1 to the US dollar and is fully backed by greenback deposits, short-term US treasuries, and other cash equivalents.
According to the announcement, the expected benefits of relying on RLUSD instead of traditional wire transfers will be as follows:
- Improve Efficiency: Speed up transactions, especially for international customers and partners.
- Reduce Costs: Lower fees and delays associated with traditional banking channels and fiat currency.
- Support Innovation: Promote the adoption of enterprise-ready digital assets that meet strict compliance and audit standards.
- Expand Treasury Options: Broaden the Company’s digital asset and decentralized finance (DeFi) strategy.
The move, which was also announced on X, led to some questions from users about why the company has opted only for the stablecoin and has left Ripple’s much more popular and bigger in market cap asset – XRP – out of the picture.
Although the statement doesn’t address this, the most probable reason is likely related to the lack of price fluctuations against traditional options like the USD. Both assets operate as cross-border tokens, but RLUSD maintains its value against the greenback, while XRP can be highly volatile.
Nevertheless, VivoPower, which said it “is undergoing a strategic transformation into the world’s first XRP-focused digital asset enterprise,” has already started to accumulate the asset. It made a $30 million purchase earlier this month, and plans to expand that number to $200 million worth of XRP.
