XRP Ledger Breaks New Ground: EVM Sidechain Goes Live, Supercharging DeFi Potential
Ripple's XRP Ledger just leveled up—big time. The long-awaited EVM-compatible sidechain is now live, bridging the gap between XRP's liquidity and Ethereum's sprawling DeFi ecosystem.
Why this matters: Developers can finally port Solidity smart contracts directly to the XRPL, while traders get cross-chain arbitrage opportunities without the usual gas-guzzling bottlenecks.
The cynical take? Another 'Ethereum killer' narrative—except this one might actually stick, given Ripple's regulatory wins and institutional foothold. Watch out, ETH maximalists.
Bottom line: This isn't just interoperability theater. Real assets will flow across chains within weeks, whether traditional finance is ready or not.
TLDR
- The XRP Ledger has officially launched its EVM-compatible sidechain to support Ethereum-based smart contracts.
- Developers can now deploy Solidity-based dApps using tools like MetaMask and Hardhat on the XRP Ledger sidechain.
- The sidechain uses XRP as its native gas token and supports 1,000 transactions per second with 3.4-second block times.
- The Axelar Bridge connects the EVM sidechain to over 80 blockchains and enables cross-chain transfers of XRP.
- The sidechain enhances the XRPL’s DeFi potential by enabling applications for lending, tokenization, and payments.
The XRP Ledger (XRPL) ecosystem has expanded with the official launch of its ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) sidechain. This integration now allows seamless interaction between Ethereum-based smart contracts and the XRP Ledger. The development strengthens the XRP Ledger’s role in decentralized finance and cross-chain application deployment.
XRP Ledger Unlocks Ethereum Compatibility With EVM Sidechain
The XRP Ledger now supports Ethereum-compatible applications through its new EVM sidechain, enhancing its smart contract capabilities. The launch introduces full Solidity compatibility, enabling developers to build and deploy Ethereum-native dApps on the XRP Ledger. The MOVE significantly improves cross-chain functionality while preserving the core efficiency of the XRP Ledger.
With this integration, developers gain access to essential tools such as MetaMask and Hardhat on the XRP Ledger’s sidechain. XRP serves as the sidechain’s native gas token, ensuring consistent utility across the expanded network. Additionally, the sidechain delivers fast finality with a 3.4-second block time and 1,000 transactions per second.
The EVM sidechain remains technically separate but interoperates fully with the XRP Ledger via the Axelar Bridge. This bridge connects the XRPL to more than 80 blockchain networks, enabling XRP to flow across chains. The XRPL maintains its original consensus and performance architecture while adding new flexibility through Ethereum compatibility.
DeFi and Cross-Chain Tools Expand the XRPL Ecosystem
The new sidechain introduces general-purpose smart contracts, unlocking new DeFi categories on the XRP Ledger. Lending, tokenization, and payment dApps are now deployable within the XRP Ledger’s broader ecosystem. These additions enable XRP to have a broader utility within decentralized applications and services.
Peersyst Technology developed the EVM sidechain and confirmed support for infrastructure tools and developer environments. The company stated that wallets, infrastructure providers, and applications will join the ecosystem gradually. This structured rollout ensures stability while extending the XRP Ledger’s capabilities step by step.
📣 It's TIME! We are proud to announce that the XRPL EVM Sidechain is now live on Mainnet! 🚀
After 3+ years of research and development with @Ripple, the network is live providing native #XRP with unlimited new capacities to FLOW across the entire web3, deploy and interact… pic.twitter.com/ckoplQbnMK
— Peersyst Technology (@Peersyst) June 30, 2025
Axelar also confirmed support for the sidechain by enabling ETH, XRP, and USDC bridging through the Squid app. This integration streamlines token transfers across chains while keeping transaction speed and costs efficient. Squid now serves as the official cross-chain transfer interface for the XRPL and its EVM sidechain.
LIVE NOW: Axelar is the core platform linking XRP Ledger, the new XRPL EVM + the native XRP token to the world.
🙆 Web3 users & XRP holders can bridge $ETH, $XRP + $USDC TODAY using @squidrouter
👷 Builders can leverage GMP in multichain smart-contract calls
🧵👇 https://t.co/nSLkrSJ2hm pic.twitter.com/Bcw3J6kqt6
— Axelar Network (@axelar) June 30, 2025
Infrastructure Partners Support the XRPL Sidechain Launch
The XRP Ledger’s EVM sidechain is already backed by 25 validator nodes managed by active network participants. This validator community ensures decentralization while maintaining the performance and security of the new network layer. It reflects growing ecosystem support and confidence in the XRP Ledger’s multi-chain evolution.
Wormhole is set to integrate with both the XRPL and the new sidechain, offering additional cross-chain transfer routes. The integration will enhance interoperability between assets and protocols across supported blockchains. Grove and Band Protocol are also onboard as infrastructure partners for data and oracle services.
The XRP Ledger sidechain launch follows the recent XPPL 2.5.0 software upgrade, aligning technical standards for cross-chain development. This synchronized update ensures consistency between the XRP Ledger mainnet and the EVM-compatible environment.
