The XRP Ledger (XRPL) is progressing towards the implementation of a new unsecured lending protocol, a development that requires further validator votes to become active. As of November 11th, key protocol amendments, LendingProtocol and SingleAssetVault, have not yet reached the necessary threshold of 29 validator votes.
The LendingProtocol amendment currently has 22 votes, while the SingleAssetVault amendment has garnered 23 votes. A related amendment, LendingProtocolV1_1, also shows 22 votes. To be activated, these amendments must maintain their support for 14 consecutive days, a requirement that has not yet been met. This system’s design diverges from typical decentralized finance (DeFi) models by relying on off-chain credit checks and the first-loss capital provided by loan brokers, rather than over-collateralization.
Further technical refinement is underway, with an amendment addressing batch transaction failures for loans, LendingProtocolV1_2, currently under review as a pull request. This indicates an ongoing effort to address potential issues before full deployment. Meanwhile, other XRPL amendments have seen a decrease in validator support; the ConfidentialTransfer amendment’s votes have dropped from 22 to 21, and the DynamicMPT amendment has seen its votes decrease from 18 to 16.
Governance and Voting Mechanics
The XRP Ledger’s governance model mandates that amendments require over 80% support from its 35 validator seats to pass and remain active. The current voting tallies indicate that both the LendingProtocol and SingleAssetVault amendments are short of the required 29 votes. Specifically, SingleAssetVault needs 6 more votes, and LendingProtocol requires 7 more votes to reach the threshold.
A New Lending Model
This proposed lending mechanism represents a departure from established DeFi protocols like Aave and Compound, which typically require significant collateral. Instead, the XRPL model leans towards traditional private credit structures. The success and market adoption of this system are expected to hinge on real-world usage, particularly the details of the first loans, including the borrower, amount, term, and the ratio of first-loss capital.
Ripple has been actively promoting this design to payment companies that require working capital for cross-border settlements. The company’s partnerships and ongoing developments, such as the expansion of its custody services with New York Mellon Bank and participation in cross-border tokenized Treasury settlements, highlight its focus on institutional and enterprise solutions within the XRPL ecosystem.
While the lending protocol amendments are still in the voting phase, a cleanup amendment for the lending code has already gone live at ledger height 108,112,129. Halborn has also completed an independent audit of related protocols, XLS-66 and its predecessor XLS-65, in February-March 2025.
The timeline for the activation of the unsecured lending protocol remains uncertain, dependent on achieving and maintaining the necessary validator consensus. The earliest potential start for the 14-day countdown to activation would be late December, assuming the required 29 votes are secured and held. The progress of these amendments, alongside the decrease in votes for other proposals, suggests a dynamic and evolving governance landscape on the XRP Ledger.
Why This Matters
The materials describe a narrow update: The XRP Ledger (XRPL) is nearing the implementation of a new unsecured lending mechanism. The exact timeline for achieving the 29-vote threshold for both LendingProtocol and SingleAssetVault.
Broader Context
Source materials place the factual news in this context: Ripple leads the development of the XRP Ledger.
