Standard Chartered will offer custody for Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin in Dubai, enabling clients to trade without transferring tokens.
Standard Chartered Expands Digital Asset Services
Standard Chartered has announced that its branch in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) will provide institutional custody for Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin, which is pegged to the U.S. dollar and issued on the XRP Ledger. This development allows eligible clients to utilize the bank's digital asset custody infrastructure, enhancing their access to cryptocurrency markets.
The bank's custody solution aims to facilitate trading with RLUSD without requiring clients to transfer their tokens to an exchange. Instead, a mechanism known as collateral mirroring will allow clients to use RLUSD as trading collateral while keeping the tokens securely held at the bank.
Integration with LMAX Group
In a strategic move, Standard Chartered is set to integrate with LMAX Group, a London-based trading platform, to enable RLUSD to be used as collateral for certain trading products. This arrangement ensures that clients' assets remain safeguarded at the bank, reducing the risk associated with potential exchange failures.
Waqar Chaudry, head of digital assets in the bank’s securities services unit, emphasized the importance of asset security for institutional clients, stating, "Institutional clients want to participate in digital asset markets without compromising on how their assets are safeguarded."
Market Context
RLUSD currently boasts a market capitalization of approximately $2.45 billion, representing a small fraction of the overall stablecoin market, which is valued at around $306 billion. The stablecoin was launched in December 2024 and is designed to maintain a fixed value of $1, backed by a combination of cash and U.S. government bonds.
This latest initiative follows Standard Chartered's previous steps into digital assets, including becoming the first global systemically important bank to allow institutions to mint and redeem Circle’s USDC directly. The RLUSD custody service received regulatory approval from Dubai’s financial authority in June 2025, but the integration with LMAX is still pending final documentation and regulatory checks.
