Daily transactions on the XRP Ledger hit nearly 3 million, tripling from mid-2025 levels as Bitstamp, Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin, and Braza Bank drove institutional activity. The spike followed a landmark May 2026 tokenized U.S. Treasury redemption transaction using Mastercard, J.P. Morgan's Kinexys, and Ondo Finance on the network. Chainalysis data now shows XRP transfers increasingly competing with USDC and central bank digital currencies for settlement flows.
Main Institutional Actors
Bitstamp, Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin, and Brazil's Braza Bank emerged as core transaction drivers behind the ledger's volume surge. These entities processed large-scale transfers through Ripple's On-Demand Liquidity service, which has facilitated cross-border payments in the Middle East and Southeast Asia since 2018. The May Treasury redemption deal marked the first time institutional heavyweights like J.P. Morgan's Kinexys and Mastercard used XRP for government security transactions.
Shifting Settlement Landscape
Institutional money movement is visibly pivoting toward the XRP Ledger as companies seek alternatives to traditional stablecoins and emerging central bank digital currencies. Evernorth, an XRP-focused treasury company backed by Ripple, Kraken, Pantera Capital, and SBI Holdings, now manages substantial XRP reserves for institutional clients. This shift comes as legacy payment channels face pressure to speed up settlement times.
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Developers are preparing Token Escrow, a Permissioned DEX, and Restricted Environments to meet institutional compliance demands. The XLS-66 XRP Lending Protocol remains inactive but could launch with 80% validator approval. Its activation would enable lending and collateral mechanisms using XRP, something the network currently lacks despite growing institutional interest.
Validator Approval Deadline
The XLS-66 lending protocol requires 80 percent of XRP Ledger validators to approve its activation before it can go live. Network participants must reach consensus by the year-end validator vote deadline if they want institutional lending capabilities operational in 2027.
