XRP Ledger
Explore the XRP Ledger
A home for learning about the network, its applications and the people building on it. Explore technical guides and explainers below.
THE PUBLIC NETWORK
A ledger for moving and issuing value.
The XRP Ledger, usually shortened to XRPL, is a public blockchain. Independent servers compare proposed transactions and reach agreement through its consensus process instead of proof-of-work mining.
XRP is XRPL's native asset. The ledger can also represent issued tokens and includes an order-book exchange, payment paths, native NFTs and automated market makers. Those tools provide mechanics; issuers and users still determine what an issued asset represents and whether it is useful.
Consensus
Validators help servers agree on transaction order and results. They do not mine XRP, and Ripple is not a switch that approves each transaction.
Assets and markets
XRP pays network transaction costs and can act as an exchange intermediary. Issued tokens depend on separate issuers, terms and redemption arrangements.
Mainnet and sidechains
The XRPL EVM Sidechain is a separate sovereign network with its own consensus and upgrades. Bridged XRP connects it to the ecosystem; its activity is not XRPL mainnet activity.
FROM THE EDITORIAL LIBRARY
Learn how XRPL works
Published guides to consensus, liquidity, tokenisation and issued assets.
GuideRipple
XRP, Ripple and XRPL: three different things, three different questions
A company announcement, a network application and a digital asset have different economics. Keeping them separate makes adoption claims easier to evaluate.
GuideXRP Ledger
How XRPL agrees on payments without proof of work
A payment network needs one reliable account of who paid whom. XRPL uses validator agreement, with trust and availability trade-offs that deserve scrutiny.
GuideEcosystem
What is XRP? The economic case for a bridge asset
Moving value between currencies requires willing buyers, sellers and usable liquidity. XRP offers one route, whose usefulness depends on the whole transaction.
GuideMarkets
Tokenisation: what changes when an asset becomes a token?
Shared records and programmable transfers may simplify markets. The rights, institutions and settlement arrangements behind a token still determine what it is worth.
GuideRegulation
Stablecoins: look at the promise behind the token
A token designed to track a dollar still depends on reserves, redemption and operational arrangements. RLUSD provides one example of the questions to ask.
NewsAdoption
BIS Researchers Test XRP Ledger to Verify Official Statistics
A new BIS working paper describes a proof of concept using the XRP Ledger to help verify the origin and integrity of official statistics. We examine how the prototype works, where XRP fits, and why the research should not be confused with a production rollout or a prediction about XRP’s price.
FROM THE REVIEWED TIMELINE
Network milestones
Protocol changes and ecosystem developments with the main network and separate sidechain kept distinct.
- Origins
Development of the XRP Ledger begins
David Schwartz, Jed McCaleb and Arthur Britto began work on a distributed ledger designed to reach agreement without proof-of-work mining.
Read the sourced milestone - XRP Ledger
The XRP Ledger launches
The network went live with XRP as its native digital asset and a built-in exchange for XRP and issued tokens.
Read the sourced milestone - XRP Ledger
The XRP Ledger Foundation is founded
The independent nonprofit XRP Ledger Foundation was formed to support development and adoption of the public network.
Read the sourced milestone - XRP Ledger
Native NFT functionality is enabled on XRPL
The NonFungibleTokensV1_1 amendment enabled native XLS-20 NFT objects and transactions on XRP Ledger mainnet.
Read the sourced milestone - XRP Ledger
XRPL's automated market maker goes live
The XLS-30 amendment added protocol-native automated market-maker pools alongside XRPL's existing order-book exchange.
Read the sourced milestone - XRP Ledger
XRPL EVM Sidechain mainnet is announced live
Ripple announced mainnet availability for the Ethereum-compatible sidechain developed with Peersyst, using bridged XRP as its gas asset.
Read the sourced milestone