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Ripple’s US dollar-pegged stablecoin RLUSD has been cleared for use by institutions in Abu Dhabi after being recognized as an accepted Fiat-referenced token by the local financial regulator.
In a announcement Today, Ripple said the recently obtained approval would allow regulated firms to deploy RLUSD in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) financial zone. It is an international financial center and free zone located on Al Maryah and Al Reem Islands in Abu Dhabi.
Compliance and trust are non-negotiable for institutional finance.
This is why $RLUSD has been included on the green list of the Abu Dhabi FSRA, allowing its use as collateral on exchanges, for loans and on prime brokerage platforms within @ADGlobalMarket—the international financial center of…
– Ripple (@ripple) November 27, 2025
The regulatory green light came from the Abu Dhabi Financial Services Regulatory Authority, which oversees ADGM.
“ADGM is recognized globally for its strong and forward-thinking regulatory leadership, so this approval strengthens RLUSD as a compliant stablecoin that meets the highest standards of trust, transparency and utility,” said Reece Merrick, Managing Director of Ripple Middle East and Africa.
“This recognition is another milestone for Ripple’s operations in the region, where we are seeing growing interest in our products,” Merrick added.
Ripple expands its presence in the United Arab Emirates
This recent approval is the latest development in Ripple’s broader efforts to increase its presence in the UAE.
In October 2024, the company revealed that it was seeking a license from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) to expand its digital asset services offering in the UAE. Later that month, the company then received approval in principle.
Earlier this year, in March, Ripple confirmed that it had received full regulatory approval, which allowed the company to offer cross-border crypto payment services within the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC).
A few months later, the DFSA then approved the use of RLUSD by companies operating within the DIFC. This means that the stablecoin can be used for regulated activities such as cash management and payments.
In addition to these regulatory steps, Ripple has also signed Zand Bank and Mamo, a fintech app, as early adopters of its blockchain-based payments stack.
RLUSD Surpasses $1 Billion Market Cap Amid Stablecoin Boom
Ripple’s RLUSD launched in late 2024 and has since become one of the largest stablecoins on the market with a capitalization of over $1 billion.
Data from CoinMarketCap shows that RLUSD is ranked 8th among stablecoins by market capitalization, behind Global Dollar (USDG) and above First Digital USD (FDUSD).
Top stablecoins by market capitalization (Source: CoinMarketCap)
The token is issued under the charter of a limited purpose trust company of the New York Department of Financial Services. According to Ripple’s announcement, the token has “strict safeguards.” These include 1:1 USD backing with high-quality liquid assets, strict reserve management and asset segregation, third-party attestation and clear redemption rights.
The recent approval for RLUSD to operate in ADGM follows a record year for stablecoins.
This space began to gain considerable momentum after U.S. President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law in July.
The regulatory clarity the GENIUS Act brought to the industry has prompted several large traditional financial firms to begin exploring stablecoins. This led the stablecoin market capitalization to exceed $300 billion for the first time, according to DefiLlama. data.
Amid the stablecoin market boom, Tether’s USDT has maintained its dominance. Currently, the stablecoin represents more than 60% of the market, or approximately $184.529 billion, according to data from DefiLlama. The second largest stablecoin is Circle’s USD Coin (USDC), which has a capitalization of over $75.48 billion.
UAE Passes Sweeping New Central Bank Law for DeFi and Web3
The UAE is often considered a hub for decentralized finance (DeFi) and Web3, given its crypto-friendly policies.
As global regulators continue to work to create a regulatory framework for digital assets, the UAE passed a sweeping new central bank law earlier this week that places DeFi and much of the Web3 industry under formal regulatory oversight.
The new UAE Central Bank Law, Federal Decree Law No. 6 of 2025, regulates financial institutions, insurance activities as well as activities related to digital assets.
The main provisions of the new law, Articles 61 and 62, list activities that require a license from the UAE Central Bank, including encrypted payments and stored digital value.
In practice, the law means that DeFi projects can no longer escape regulation by pretending they are just code. This also means that decentralization no longer exempts a protocol from respect.
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