An Ethereum-compatible sidechain for the XRP Ledger has been launched on the testnet.

The XRPL EVM Sidechain has been launched on the testnet, as announced by Peersyst, who also mentioned that additional partners and validators may be introduced soon. This initiative aims to enable XRPL developers to effectively replicate decentralized applications on various EVM platforms, thereby potentially reaching more than 100 million users. Peersyst Technology, a blockchain development company, has officially revealed the long-awaited launch of the XRPL EVM Sidechain on the testnet. The report states that this significant achievement was the result of a strong collaboration between Axelar, a Web3 interoperability platform, RippleX, the development division of Ripple, and the blockchain science company Common Prefix. Source: Peersyst. The Context of the Narrative. In October 2022, Peersyst launched the initial phase of the EVM Sidechain for XRPL on the XRPL Dev platform. Our research indicates that this occurred after David Schwartz from Ripple gave an explicit explanation of how the initiative could incorporate Ethereum Smart Contracts onto the blockchain. The second phase of the project was planned for early 2023, with the third phase aiming to introduce permissionless EVM sidechains and bridges on the XRPL mainnet. In June 2024, RippleX announced that the XRPL EVM Sidechain would link to the mainnet via the Axelar bridge, facilitating seamless asset transfers and enhancing interoperability between networks. At the same time, the launch of the official testnet suggests that the team is close to revealing new partners and validators. Peersyst has indicated that more announcements are forthcoming, but they will proceed gradually. Recently, RippleX proposed the integration of WebAssembly (WASM) for smart contracts on the XRPL. As stated in our earlier news update, this was intended to guarantee that the system makes considerable progress in terms of improved programmability.