Ripple Advances Zero-Knowledge Proofs on XRPL to Unlock Privacy and Scalability

• RippleX is developing ZKP integration to enable privacy, scalability, and safer interoperability to the XRPL without disrupting speed.
• ZKP will facilitate programmable privacy, minimize cross-chain interoperability, and scale to Layer-2, creating new opportunities to developers and institutions.

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Ripple is proceeding with its intention to deploy zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) technology to the XRP Ledger, and the research is now in the prototyping stage. This is part of an effort by Ripple, through its developer-facing team, RippleX, to make XRPL more private, scalable, and interoperable without altering its underlying design as a fast, efficient settlement layer.

Aanchal Malhotra, the Head of Research at RippleX, confirmed in a recent episode of the Onchain Economy video series that facilitating zero-knowledge proofs is a high-priority goal. The team is developing a hybrid architecture to bring together ZK features specific to the architecture of XRPL, which was developed in advance of the emergence of modern ZK systems.

Zero-knowledge proofs allow users to prove that something is true without the source data. This allows selective disclosure; that is, the user can release only the information that they need, such as proving that they are over 18, without stating their specific age. 

RippleX is designing a custom approach instead of using off-the-shelf ZK solutions, as XRPL, which, as we reported, has already seen an upgrade to 3.0.0, was created before ZKP technology was widely available.

Ripple’s Plan: Selective Privacy, Trustless Bridges, and Layer-2 Scaling

RippleX is taking a hybrid route, combining native ZK functions for performance with a programmable layer for developer flexibility. This lets builders choose the best proving systems for their needs. According to Malhotra, the goal is not complete but programmable privacy, where users or institutions can selectively reveal details for compliance while keeping other information private.

Trust-minimized interoperability is another benefit. Most cross-chain bridges today depend on trusted third parties. This trust becomes substitutable with cryptographic proofs with the help of ZKPs, and the operations of bridges become safer and more verifiable. RippleX considers this to be the key to scaling multi-chain activity without compromising security.

Off-chain computation, with zero-knowledge proofs, is also supported, which allows XRPL to scale with Layer-2 systems. The developer can execute complicated calculations on these secondary layers and transfer tiny and verifiable proofs to XRPL. This decreases the workload on the main chain and leaves it with its core business of settlement and verification.

In a post on X, one XRP user has praised Aanchal Malhotra and her work on ZKPs, and the importance of this technology to the future of the XRP Ledger. He stated:

Meanwhile, Malhotra has described scalability as a multidimensional challenge. In her view, ZKPs solve this by allowing Layer-2s to execute heavy workloads while Layer-1 simply verifies proofs. This design brings higher throughput without overburdening XRPL’s base layer.

As detailed by CNF, Ripple recently demonstrated XRPL institutional-grade infrastructure at Davos 2026 as a further development of its global financial adoption. In the meantime, XRP has seen a dip in the last 7 days, falling by over 7%. At press time, XRP price was trading at $1.92, a 2.8% decline in the past day.

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