On October 17, 2022, Ripple's core development team Ripplex, in collaboration with Peersyst Technology, announced the first phase of the XRPL EVM sidechain, a blockchain designed to bring Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatibility to the XRP Ledger. The sidechain is now available for testing on the XRPL Devnet, enabling developers to exchange Devnet XRP between the EVM sidechain and the XRP Ledger via a bridge, and to deploy existing Solidity smart contracts.
Technical Roadmap and Key Features
The XRPL EVM sidechain aims to integrate smart contract functionality into the XRP ecosystem, making it compatible with Ethereum tools like MetaMask, Remix, and Truffle. According to a blog post by Mayukha Vadari, a developer at Ripplex, the project is structured in three phases: Phase One (current) allows developers to assess technologies and test Solidity apps; Phase Two (early 2023) will introduce a permissionless EVM sidechain and bridge; Phase Three targets a permissionless EVM sidechain on the XRPL Mainnet, featuring block and finality times comparable to the XRPL mainnet and full support for Ethereum smart contracts.
Notably, XRP creator David Schwartz conceptualized a similar idea as early as 1988, and Peersyst's expertise in cross-chain technology has been instrumental in the implementation. The sidechain is seen as a pivotal move for XRP to compete with smart contract platforms like Solana and Avalanche, attracting Ethereum developers to the XRPL ecosystem.
Market Reaction and Token Performance
Following the announcement, XRP's price experienced short-term pressure, falling 0.6% in 24 hours and 10.6% over the past seven days. However, the token has gained 6% in the last two weeks and 33.7% over the past month. Year-to-date, XRP is down 58.1% against the U.S. dollar, but analysts view the EVM compatibility as a long-term catalyst. The sidechain could enhance XRPL's liquidity and application scope by enabling Ethereum-based dApps.
Developers are encouraged to test the Devnet and provide feedback. The timeline for Phase Two remains flexible, but the team expects to launch it in early 2023. If successful, XRPL could become a key bridge between the Ethereum and XRP ecosystems, advancing cross-chain interoperability.