Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has outlined plans to extend the XRP Ledger beyond payments into institutional lending and yield products, a framework that would let institutions put XRP holdings to work in credit markets rather than leave them idle in reserve. Lending of this kind is a staple of smart contract platforms but has yet to ship natively on XRPL, making the proposal a notable expansion for a ledger built around payments. The push comes as Ripple-backed Evernorth begins trading on Nasdaq under the ticker XRPN, though the lending ambitions remain dependent on network upgrades that validators have not yet approved. Lending functionality is not yet live on XRPL mainnet, and its rollout hinges on validator approval of pending amendments.

Brad Garlinghouse at the Evernorth closing bell ceremony. Ripple contributing XRP to Evernorth to support the community and on chain activity "We think the XRP Ledger will be used in ways that shines and is unique" "Leveraging the on chain (XRP Ledger) capabilities to earn… pic.twitter.com/zoB6HsehBP

— Vet (@Vet_X0) October 14, 2026

Evernorth Deployment Anchors the Lending Push

Evernorth announced on October 14 that it would begin deploying part of its 473 million XRP treasury during the fourth quarter, with Ripple, Kraken, Coinbase and BitGo supporting the initial institutional strategies — a lineup that spans exchanges and institutional custody providers. A Securities and Exchange Commission filing shows Ripple contributed 126,791,458 XRP to the transaction. Separately, the ledger activated new account permission controls on October 8, allowing businesses to delegate tasks without sharing private keys.

XRPL Lending Upgrades Await Validator Approval

Two proposed upgrades underpin the lending plans and remain pending. XLS-65 would create pools holding a single asset, while XLS-66 would support fixed-term loans. As of October 15, validator support stood at 60% and 54%, respectively, with both amendments below the activation threshold. Activation requires more than 80% support sustained for 14 consecutive days, a consensus bar that leaves the decision with the network's validators rather than Ripple alone. On X, RippleX, an with 210,000 followers, said LendingProtocolV1_1 must activate before the other upgrades. That update adds fixed-term vault controls and recognizes interest when borrowers pay.

Existing XRP Yield Products Continue Operating

While the upgrades await approval, yield products on the network continue to run. Doppler Finance says more than 14,000 depositors have placed over $150 million into its XRP and RLUSD vaults — RLUSD being Ripple's stablecoin — with returns generated through trading price differences and institutional custody. Ripple has also added embedded XRPL wallets through Privy, an integration that lets developers add payment tools without building wallets from scratch. Doppler plans to add lending services once the ledger upgrades activate, although its existing products do not constitute native XRP staking.

Lending Framework Builds in Risk Controls

The proposed lending framework keeps borrower checks outside the blockchain and offers optional first-loss reserves to cover some initial loan losses, alongside institutional risk controls. Ripple's growing RLUSD infrastructure includes a recent stablecoin custody arrangement involving Standard Chartered and LMAX Group. Evernorth plans to move into on-chain credit after activation and operational testing. Its initial treasury deployment will use established counterparties, while native lending remains unavailable on XRPL mainnet. Garlinghouse has not announced an activation date, and validator votes may change before final approval. With both amendments still well short of the 80% bar as of October 15, the markers to watch are validator support for XLS-65 and XLS-66, the LendingProtocolV1_1-first sequencing RippleX described, and the pace of Evernorth's fourth-quarter deployment.

Source: CoinCentral