Ripple Labs has appointed Bank of New York Mellon as the primary custodian for the cash reserves that back Ripple USD (RLUSD), the company’s U.S.-dollar-pegged stablecoin. Under the agreement, BNY Mellon will safeguard the reserve assets and provide transaction-banking services designed to support issuance and redemption of the token, the companies said on 9 July. RLUSD, launched in December 2024 and approved by the New York Department of Financial Services, has grown to more than $500 million in circulation after seven months. Market data show roughly $435 million of the supply on Ethereum and about $65 million on Ripple’s XRP Ledger. The token targets enterprise users seeking faster and lower-cost cross-border payments and is backed 1:1 by cash and cash equivalents held in segregated accounts. BNY Mellon, the oldest U.S. bank and a long-time proponent of digital-asset services, administers about $43 trillion in assets. Its latest mandate underscores a broader shift among traditional financial institutions toward servicing stablecoins, following similar custody roles the bank assumed for Circle’s USDC in 2022.