XRP Ledger’s EVM Sidechain Goes Live: Ethereum DApps Now Unleashed in XRP Ecosystem
Game on—XRP Ledger just flipped the switch on its Ethereum-compatible sidechain. After years of 'coming soon' promises, developers can finally port Ethereum smart contracts to the XRP ecosystem. Cue the speculative frenzy.
The Mainnet Moment
No more testnets, no more hypotheticals. The EVM sidechain launched with full interoperability—meaning Ethereum's DeFi bluechips and NFT platforms can now run on XRP's faster, cheaper rails. Traders are already front-running the liquidity migration.
Why This Burns Bridges
XRP purists get DeFi capabilities without abandoning their beloved ledger. Ethereum maximalists get escape velocity from gas fees. And bankers? They're still trying to patent 'blockchain, but slower' while this thing eats both their lunches.
The catch? Now we get to watch which ecosystem bleeds TVL faster—though something tells me the arbitrage bots will profit either way.
Cross-border payments company Ripple announced Monday that its XRP Ledger has rolled out its ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible sidechain, enabling Ether-based smart contracts and cross-chain decentralized applications (dapps) capabilities within the XRPL ecosystem.
XRPL’s EVM Sidechain Now Live On Mainnet
In a June 30 press release, Ripple revealed that the XRP Ledger has rolled out its EVM sidechain on mainnet, allowing developers to build, port and deploy cross-chain Ethereum-compatible applications within its ecosystem.
The XRPL EVM Sidechain, a parallel-running blockchain, integrates the XRP Ledger’s low-cost transaction functionalities with Ethereum’s smart contract capability, opening the door to new classes of decentralized apps — including lending, tokenization, and payments, that prioritize compliance, low cost, and fast settlement.
The sidechain, created through a collaborative effort by Ripple, Peersyst, and the wider XRPL ecosystem, connects to the XRP Ledger through an Axelar bridge, which links to over 80 blockchains.
1/ The XRPL EVM Sidechain is live on mainnet: https://t.co/CJ61aqZvhp
After years of building with @Peersyst and the XRPL community, devs can now build, port, and deploy cross-chain and EVM-only dApps using XRP as gas, with a direct bridge to the XRPL.
Get started
“The XRPL EVM Sidechain introduces a flexible environment for developers to deploy EVM-based applications, while maintaining a connection to the XRPL’s efficiency,” Ripple’s chief technology officer and co-creator of the XRP Ledger, David Schwartz, stated. “It extends the capabilities of the ecosystem without changing the fundamentals that make the XRPL reliable.”
XRPL’s native token, XRP, will serve as the native gas token for the sidechain.
“A New Era For XRP”
The sidechain introduces multiple key features, including access to over 6 million XRPL wallet holders, faster block times compared to Ethereum, low transaction costs, and a vibrant validator network boasting over 25 firms.
“With the launch of XRPL EVM, we’re unlocking a new era for XRP — one where it can FLOW seamlessly across the multichain world,” Peersyst founder and CEO Ferran Prat said. “This isn’t the finish line; it’s Day 1 of a much bigger journey toward interoperability, programmability, and utility at scale.”
The EVM Sidechain claims to have already attracted various partners, including Band Protocol for oracle services, Grove for public RPC endpoints, and upcoming DeFi applications from Strobe, Securd, and Vertex.
Wormhole, a leading cross-chain messaging protocol supporting over 200 applications across 35+ blockchain ecosystems, is also set to integrate with the sidechain.
The development comes as the XRPL increasingly positions itself as a hub for institutions and tokenized real-world assets like real estate. Case in point, Ripple teamed up with Ctrl Alt to support Dubai’s first real estate tokenization project, which allows title deeds to be tokenized on the XRP Ledger.
