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- The XRP Ledger (XRPL) EVM Sidechain has officially gone live on the mainnet, setting the foundation to extend the ecosystem’s capabilities without changing its fundamentals.
- XRP would serve as the gas token for the XRPL EVM Sidechain, setting it up for an upsurge.
In a recent update, CNF discussed the testnet launch of the XRP Ledger (XRPL) EVM Sidechain. According to that report, this was done through the collaborative effort of the Web3 interoperability platform Axelar, RippleX, and blockchain science firm Common Prefix.
Exactly two months later, Team Ripple has announced the mainnet launch of the XRP Ledger (XRPL) EVM Sidechain. Per the official report, this underscores the commitment and the overall expansion of the XRPL’s functionality to “enable creation, exchange of digital assets, and transfers” in line with the global regulatory standards.
With this official launch, developers could build, port, and deploy cross-chain and EVM-only Decentralized Applications (DApps). Most importantly, this would be done while leveraging the over 12 years of operational experience and deep liquidity of the XRPL.
Commenting on this, the Co-creator of the XRPL, David Schwartz, highlighted that this development ensures that developers have access to a flexible environment. Most importantly, this would “extend the capabilities of the ecosystem” without modifying the fundamentals and compromising the reliability of the Ledger.
For the CEO and founder of Peersyst Ferran Prat, this launch marks the “beginning of the journey towards interoperability, programmability, and utility at scale.”
In a blog post detailing this milestone, the XRPL EVM Sidechain was explained as a fast and secure Sidechain that is connected to the XRPL through the Axelar bridge. Per our research, the Axelar bridge is connected to more than 80 blockchains and is the first interoperability provider to connect the XRPL EVM. The Sidechain is also reported to be connected to the Squid, significantly enhancing the capabilities of the XRPL’s multi-chain.
Users are also expected to be presented with more options, including one of the top interoperability protocols called Wormhole. As noted in our recent post, this protocol has so far enabled more than 200 applications across over 35 blockchain ecosystems.
Speaking on this development, the director at Axelar Foundation and co-founder of the Axelar protocol, Georgios Vlachos, explained how this launch could meet the rising demand within the ecosystem.
Crypto is entering an exciting phase as institutions and enterprises are pursuing compelling new use cases. The XRP Ledger EVM Sidechain is positioned to capture this rising demand and Axelar is the secure, institutional-grade connector that will make it possible.
Why the XRPL EVM Sidechain Matters
According to Ripple, the XRPL EVM would unlock access to the XRPL ecosystem, which has more than 6 million wallet holders. Additionally, XRP would serve as the gas token for the XRPL EVM Sidechain. Apart from this, the Sidechain would provide faster block times, low transaction costs, and guarantee a robust validator network. Developers would also get 1000 Transactions Per Second (TPS) throughput and full Ethereum compatibility with Solidity, MetaMask, Hardhat, etc.
Reacting to this news, the price of XRP surged by 1.8% on its 24-hour chart to trade at $2.2.
According to our recent analysis, the price could build on this momentum and other catalysts to hit $14 in the near term. As mentioned in our previous news brief, Sistine Research has also predicted that XRP could hit $73 this cycle.
