A frontrunner to be the next Fed chair has made a proposal that could benefit XRP issuer Ripple — and its RLUSD stablecoin.
A top executive at Ripple — the company that issues XRP — has said a recent proposal by a senior Federal Reserve official could be a game-changer.
Stu Alderoty was reacting to a speech given by Governor Christopher Waller, who has suggested that crypto firms should be given access to Fed “skinny” accounts.
This would allow businesses such as stablecoin issuers to take advantage of the central bank’s payment rails — and eliminate the need to use traditional financial institutions who may be uncomfortable dabbling in digital assets. Waller had said:
“I wanted to send a message that this is a new era for the Federal Reserve in payments, the DeFi industry is not viewed with suspicion or scorn. My view for the Fed from now on is embrace the disruption — don’t avoid it.”
Ripple had originally applied for a Fed master account, which would enable it to hold reserves of its RLUSD stablecoin with the central bank.
Speaking to Reuters last week, Alderoty welcomed Waller’s intervention — saying:
“I think it’s an attractive idea, and I think it should give traditional banks some comfort.”
Cutting banks out as middlemen has the potential to speed up transactions all while making them less expensive, and could help RLUSD go mainstream. All of this comes at a time of more relaxed regulations surrounding stablecoins — not to mention extensive levels of competition from the likes of Tether and Circle.
Alderoty, who serves as Ripple’s chief legal officer, added:
“Thinking about that issue of redeemability, to be able to get in and out of Treasury or U.S. dollar assets quickly, the most efficient and transparent and quickest way to do that would be with access to a master account.”
Of course, Governor Waller’s proposal is primarily theoretical at this stage — but all of that could change if he ends up succeeding Jerome Powell as Fed chairman when his term expires next year.
As previously reported by Cryptonews, all five of those on the shortlist put forward by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent are pro-crypto in one way or another — and that could pave the way for some much-needed innovation.
All of this comes as Alderoty challenges the narrative, put forward by some U.S. media outlets, that crypto is “no more than a tool of crime and corruption.” Last month, he had posted on X:
“Crypto is a technology used by more than 55 million Americans, and over three-quarters say it’s improved their lives; helping them send money, prove ownership, and build new forms of commerce on transparent, traceable ledgers. Corruption and crime don’t thrive in plain sight.”
