RLUSD Isn’t a Threat — It’s the Key to Ending XRP Sell-Pressure, Says Ripple CTO
As market analyst Diana notes, Ripple CTO David Schwartz has delivered one of the clearest clarifications the XRP community has heard in years, one that turns a long-standing fear upside down.
For years, critics argued that products like RLUSD would compete with or undermine XRP. Schwartz says the opposite is true. Ripple’s evolving revenue model isn’t a threat to XRP, it could actually eliminate the very sell-pressure investors have worried about for years.
Schwartz openly acknowledged that Ripple once depended heavily on XRP sales to sustain its operations, a model where “most of Ripple’s income came from selling XRP.” This fueled a major market concern: if revenue dipped, Ripple would be forced to sell more tokens, creating consistent downward pressure on XRP’s price.
Less Revenue = More Dumping
When XRP’s price drops or when Ripple’s revenue weakens, the company naturally feels pressure to sell more XRP from its holdings.
It’s simple economics. Without sufficient cash flow from business activities, selling XRP becomes the fallback to sustain growth, pay expenses, and keep operations running smoothly.
This historical model is precisely why sell-pressure emerged in the first place.
More Revenue = Less Dumping
Ripple in 2025 is nothing like the Ripple of 2018. The company no longer relies on XRP sales to stay afloat.
With RLUSD, a growing suite of enterprise solutions, and an expanding global payments network, Ripple is now building robust, independent revenue streams that don’t rely on XRP reserves whatsoever, a shift that fundamentally rewrites the entire narrative.
Schwartz explains that as Ripple’s revenue grows and diversifies, the company no longer needs to sell XRP to fund operations. Ripple can scale, innovate, and strengthen XRP’s ecosystem without touching its token reserves.
Instead of harming XRP, new products like RLUSD actually remove the structural sell-pressure that has weighed on the asset for years.
Why This Matters for XRP’s Long-Term Value
The narrative that RLUSD competes with XRP is based on a misunderstanding. Stablecoins and XRP serve different functions within Ripple’s ecosystem:
RLUSD is built for stability, liquidity, and settlement in predictable fiat value.
XRP is built for speed, cross-border liquidity, and bridging assets.
By creating RLUSD and other services that generate real, recurring income, Ripple strengthens its financial foundation, which indirectly strengthens XRP. A profitable Ripple is a Ripple that doesn’t need to sell XRP to survive.
This is the first time Ripple is truly breaking away from the old dependency model. With more revenue channels coming online, the company is transitioning into a sustainable, enterprise-grade ecosystem where XRP is a utility asset, not a cash flow tool.
Therefore, Schwartz makes it clear that RLUSD isn’t a threat to XRP, it’s a catalyst. This is because when Ripple earns more, it stops selling XRP.
As for holders, removing that long-standing sell-pressure could be the most bullish shift the ecosystem has seen in years.
Conclusion
David Schwartz’s clarification signals a pivotal shift in how the market views Ripple. For years, XRP’s main challenge wasn’t competition, it was Ripple’s dependence on token sales to fund operations.
With RLUSD, enterprise-grade payment solutions, and new revenue streams, Ripple is breaking free from that model. Growth no longer relies on selling XRP, easing the structural sell-pressure that has long held the asset back.
Far from threatening XRP, these innovations fortify Ripple’s financial foundation and position XRP to thrive as the ecosystem’s core utility token. Ripple’s evolution marks not a risk, but a new, sustainable, and bullish chapter for XRP.
