Ant Group-supported R25 launches RWA yield stablecoin on Polygon, ushering in a new era of on-chain yield.

On November 14, 2025, the stablecoin protocol R25, incubated by Ant Group under Alibaba, officially launched the rcUSD+ yield-bearing stablecoin on the Polygon network. This innovative product provides holders with a real-world asset (RWA) yield source by configuring low-risk institutional-grade assets such as money market funds and structured notes. The choice to debut on the Polygon network highlights its low fee advantages and its capability to handle billions of dollars in stablecoin transactions monthly, marking a key breakthrough in the deep integration of TradFi yields and DeFi composability.

R25 Strategic Layout and Polygon Technology Synergy

As a strategic incubation project of Ant Group in the blockchain field, R25 has been quietly developed since early 2024, officially debuting nearly two years later. Choosing Polygon as the launch network is not a coincidence—this network currently handles about 15% of the global on-chain stablecoin transactions, with a monthly transaction volume exceeding $30 billion, and Gas fees typically maintained below $0.01, providing an ideal environment for high-frequency small-value transactions. Sandeep Nailwal, co-founder of Polygon, emphasized in a joint statement that this collaboration will introduce “institutional-grade real-world assets” into the ecosystem, providing a new foundational layer for developers to build payment channels, lending markets, and collateral systems.

From a technical architecture perspective, R25 fully leverages Ant Group's accumulation in asset verification, including the self-developed blockchain traceability system and multi-party secure computing framework. These technologies ensure that each rcUSD+ token is backed by corresponding real assets, and the asset status can be verified in real-time through on-chain proof. Unlike traditional stablecoins that only pursue pegged exchange rates, the innovation of rcUSD+ lies in seamlessly transplanting the yield mechanism of traditional financial markets onto the chain while maintaining 7x24 hours of redeemability.

Analysis of rcUSD+ Yield Mechanism and Risk Control

The sources of yield for rcUSD+ are mainly divided into three tiers: approximately 60% allocated to money market funds, 30% invested in short-term structured notes, and the remaining 10% as liquidity reserves. This allocation strategy aims to balance yield and liquidity, with an expected annualized yield in the range of 3.5%-4.2%, automatically compounded daily into the token value. Unlike DeFi protocols that rely on inflation incentives or high-risk farming, the yield of rcUSD+ comes entirely from real investment returns in traditional finance markets, avoiding the risks of a Ponzi structure.

In terms of risk control, rcUSD+ has set up multiple protective mechanisms. Asset custody is managed by an institution holding a license from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, conducting daily net asset value audits and implementing over-collateralization protection through smart contracts. When the collateralization ratio falls below 105%, the system will automatically trigger a liquidation process to ensure the safety of the principal for token holders. Additionally, Ant Group's risk control system monitors changes in the credit ratings of underlying assets in real-time, and if any asset in the portfolio experiences a downgrade, rebalancing will be initiated within 24 hours.

rcUSD+ Core Parameters and Architecture

Issuing Network: Polygon

Stablecoin name: rcUSD+

Sources of income: money market funds (60%), structured notes (30%), liquidity reserves (10%)

Expected annualized yield: 3.5%-4.2%

Collateralization ratio requirement: ≥105%

Asset audit frequency: daily

Redemption mechanism: T+0 real-time redemption

Technical Support: Ant Group Asset Verification System

Current Development Status and Competitive Landscape of the RWA Track

The launch of rcUSD+ comes on the eve of the explosion of the real-world asset tokenization market. According to a forecast by the Boston Consulting Group, by 2030, the tokenized RWA market may reach a scale of $16 trillion, accounting for more than 10% of global GDP. Currently, Polygon has become the preferred platform for RWA projects, with recent deployments including the government-supported stablecoin from India and the AlloyX regulated money market fund on this network. This agglomeration effect not only reduces the development costs for new projects but also creates a powerful network effect.

From the perspective of the competitive landscape, R25 directly competes with tokenized government bond products such as Ondo Finance's OUSG and BlackRock's BUIDL. However, rcUSD+ has formed a differentiated advantage through broader asset allocation and support from Ant Group's ecosystem. Traditional financial institutions like Fidelity and State Street are also actively laying out RWA, but most are still in the testing phase. With Ant Group's deep accumulation in the payment field, R25 is expected to be the first to achieve large-scale applications in scenarios such as cross-border e-commerce and cross-border remittances.

Regulatory Compliance Framework and Institutional Adoption Path

Despite the enormous potential in the RWA field, regulatory compliance remains a key factor determining its development. From the outset, rcUSD+ has fully considered the compliance requirements of major global jurisdictions, including the GENIUS Act in the United States, the MiCA regulations in the European Union, and the VASP licensing system in Hong Kong. In particular, regarding reserve asset disclosure, rcUSD+ commits to publishing monthly reserve reports audited by the Big Four accounting firms, with transparency standards far exceeding those of traditional financial products.

The adoption path for institutions has initially become clear. The first batch of pilot users includes cross-border e-commerce merchants and supply chain companies within the Ant ecosystem, which can use rcUSD+ as both a payment tool and an interest-bearing asset. Next, the R25 plan will cooperate with mainstream CEXs to launch rcUSD+ trading pairs and connect with DeFi protocols such as Compound and Aave as high-quality collateral. In the long term, if rcUSD+ can prove its stability during bear markets, it cannot be ruled out as a potential reserve asset for central bank digital currencies (CBDC).

Technical Implementation Principles of Yield-Generating Stablecoins

For ordinary users, understanding how yield-bearing stablecoins work is crucial. Unlike traditional stablecoins with a single peg mechanism, rcUSD+ automatically converts the earnings generated by reserve assets into the intrinsic value of the tokens through smart contracts. Specifically, when the underlying money market fund generates interest income, the smart contract will mint new rcUSD+ tokens in real-time and distribute them proportionally to all holders; this process is fully automated and requires no active intervention from users.

From a technical perspective, this mechanism relies on the Oracle network to provide reliable asset net value feedback. R25 employs a multi-Oracle design, including the Chainlink node network and traditional financial market data providers, where any price discrepancies will trigger an arbitration mechanism. To ensure security, asset transfers require multi-signature authorization, and private key shards are stored in geographically distributed hardware security modules.

Individual Investor Participation Strategies and Risk Assessment

For individual investors considering allocating to rcUSD+, it is important to clarify its risk-return characteristics. Compared to traditional bank savings, rcUSD+ offers a more competitive yield; relative to DeFi native stablecoins, its risk profile is closer to traditional financial products. It is recommended that investors allocate 10%-20% of their portfolio to this category as a supplement to the low-risk asset portion.

Risks to be vigilant about include smart contract vulnerabilities, systemic risks in the TradFi market, and changes in regulatory policies. Although rcUSD+ has set up various protective mechanisms, it may still face stress testing under extreme market conditions. Investors should regularly monitor reserve asset reports to avoid excessive concentration in a single yield-bearing stablecoin. For large amounts of capital, it is recommended to diversify risks through multiple RWA products.

Industry Prospects and Ecological Impact

The launch of rcUSD+ may become a watershed moment in the development of the RWA sector. On one hand, it demonstrates how traditional financial giants can transplant existing business models to the blockchain through technological upgrades; on the other hand, it injects real sources of yield into DeFi, reducing reliance on inflationary token incentives. As more institutions follow suit, we may see the emergence of more complex RWA products, including tokenized corporate bonds and mortgage-backed securities.

From a macro perspective, the collaboration between R25 and Polygon represents a deep integration of blockchain and traditional finance. When traditional financial returns can be automatically distributed through code, and real-world assets can be traded 24/7, the operational efficiency of financial markets will achieve a qualitative leap. Although the current RWA market size is only about USD 40 billion, if it maintains a growth rate of 25% per quarter, breaking through the trillion-dollar mark before 2030 is not out of reach.

Market Outlook

When Ant Group chose to launch rcUSD+ on Polygon, and institutional-level asset returns began to flow to ordinary holders, we witnessed not just the birth of another stablecoin, but also a historical moment of the blurring boundaries between traditional finance and the crypto world. The value of rcUSD+ lies not only in its few percentage points of annualized return but also in its proof of the feasibility of bidirectional flow of on-chain and off-chain assets. On the road to the trillion-dollar RWA market, today's small step may very well be a big leap when looking back tomorrow—after all, every financial innovation begins when someone dares to redefine “money.”