At the Apex 2025 event, Ripple's Chief Technology Officer David Schwartz announced that the XRP Ledger (XRPL) will launch its Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible sidechain in the second quarter of 2025. This new sidechain, currently in the testnet phase, enables developers to deploy Ethereum-based decentralized applications (dApps) within the XRPL ecosystem, potentially boosting decentralized finance (DeFi) adoption on XRPL.
The sidechain operates using wrapped XRP as the gas token and connects to the XRPL mainnet via Axelar, facilitating asset transfers and interaction between the two chains. The development aims to blend XRPL's transaction speed and low costs with Ethereum’s robust smart contract capabilities.
Since launching the testnet, 87 contributors have been actively building apps and tools on this platform, with the mainnet rollout expected after further validator onboarding. Alongside this, XRPL has expanded its stablecoin offerings with region-specific tokens EURØP, a MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin backed by institutions such as Societe Generale, and USDB, a dollar-pegged stablecoin from Brazil’s Braza Group.
Though Ripple's integration with Ethereum via this sidechain strengthens its ecosystem, some criticism arose regarding Ripple’s rumored partnership with the European Central Bank on a digital euro project. Investor Gary Cardone condemned XRP’s association with centralized government initiatives, calling it a threat to financial freedom—a claim refuted by community members who highlighted the lack of official confirmation from ECB.