Ripple to Delete 10,000+ Lines of XChainBridge Code From XRP (XRP) Ledger

XChainBridge Code Headed for Removal

Ripple has proposed stripping more than 10,000 lines of unused bridge protocol code from the XRP Ledger's core xrpld software, a cleanup aimed directly at shrinking the network's attack surface. The code in question, XChainBridge (XLS-38), relied on witness servers to observe and attest transactions moving assets between the XRPL mainnet and connected sidechains. In June 2024 the company opted for an accelerator approach on its EVM sidechain and left XLS-38 pending validator voting, planning to gauge demand over 12 to 15 months. That demand never arrived — major use cases were absorbed by other mechanisms, leaving the module in maintenance-only limbo. Ripple estimates that withdrawing XChainBridge alongside the related fixXChainRewardRounding amendment would cut 10,000-plus lines from xrpld. The deletion is staged: the code is first flagged as deprecated, then excised in a later release once network consensus converges.

August Close Sets Up a Watched September

While developers subtract, traders are positioning for what comes next. Market data shows XRP (XRP) closed August roughly 35% higher, trading near $1.41 at the monthly close, and the asset has ended September positive in each of the past four years — gains of 46.2%, 0.42%, 7.98% and 2.49% — against a median September return of just 0.42% across its full history. The third quarter has delivered a 37% return through end-August, topping the historical quarterly median of 27.9% after first-half declines of 27.1% and 22.4%, a rebound in which the token led major altcoins. Attention now turns to the Senate's planned Sept. 15, 2026 final vote on the CLARITY Act, which would settle the token's commodity status at the federal level. Flows add support: spot XRP ETFs recorded $127.34 million in net August inflows, lifting cumulative net inflows to $1.64 billion, while the XRP Ledger crossed 5 billion lifetime transactions this week.

Post-Quantum Roadmap Targets 2028

A second engineering workstream looks further ahead. Ripple is executing a four-phase plan to make the XRP Ledger fully post-quantum secure by 2028. Phase one builds emergency “Q-Day preparation” mechanics — forcing account migration to quantum-resistant formats and recovering funds via zero-knowledge proofs if a quantum threat arrives early. Phase two, already underway in the first half of 2026, tests NIST-recommended post-quantum schemes under real XRPL load, measuring the cost in storage, bandwidth and throughput. Phase three, slated for the second half of 2026, runs candidate post-quantum signatures in parallel with today's elliptic-curve signatures on Devnet, with the formal mainnet conversion to follow via a network amendment in 2028. The accelerated schedule follows Google Quantum AI research indicating that breaking blockchain encryption may demand fewer resources than previously estimated, pulling some credible threat windows forward to 2032. XRPL's native key rotation and deterministic key generation — the same primitives behind an HD wallet — let accounts migrate gradually without disrupting users.

Evernorth's XRPN Listing Advances

The treasury side of the ecosystem hit its own milestone. The SEC declared the Form S-4 for Evernorth Holdings' proposed merger with Armada Acquisition Corp. II (Nasdaq: XRPN) effective on Aug. 27, after the company filed a final amendment to the registration statement on Aug. 26. That clears the way for a shareholder vote on Sept. 30, with holders of record as of Aug. 20 eligible. The SEC action permits the vote but does not constitute approval of the deal's substance, and closing is expected late in the third quarter or early in the fourth. Chief executive Asheesh Birla said the step moves the firm closer to “a professionally managed XRP treasury built to public-market transparency and governance standards.” Revised financing terms replace a $2.36 XRP reference price with the closing volume-weighted average price, likely trimming shares issued. Backed by Ripple, Arrington Capital, SBI Group, Pantera Capital, Kraken and GSR, Evernorth plans to deploy capital through XRP lending, liquidity pools and on-chain credit — while distinguishing XRP's settlement role from Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin. Readers tracking the market in real time can follow live spot and futures prices on Binance.

$1.4066 Ceiling in Focus

COINOTAG's proprietary 42-indicator composite S/R scoring engine rates the $1.4066 resistance at 80/100 (STRONG), driven by the confluence of a low-volume node, Value Area High, HVN and the point of control — the immediate ceiling with spot at $1.3807, down 3.19% in 24 hours. Below, the $1.1514 support also scores 80/100, sourced from a Flip R→S, the 0.786 Fibonacci, the 50-day SMA and Value Area Low. Momentum stays constructive: RSI at 64.21 with a bullish MACD inside an uptrend. Derivatives show funding at 0.0025%, open interest of $924.18 million and a long/short account ratio of 2.75 (73.4% long) — a crowded-long setup that amplifies downside wicks, with the Fear & Greed Index at 68 (Greed). A daily close above $1.4066 opens the $1.4773 level; a daily close below $1.1514 invalidates the bullish structure.