$XRP Ledger’s quantum-proof plan: same fees, bigger keys, bigger backup plans

The XRP Ledger Foundation has proposed a quantum-resistant account upgrade that would let users add an ML-DSA-44 signing key and disable their existing signature without raising transaction fees, as Ripple targets a full quantum transition by 2028. The proposal is part of the Foundation’s 2027 protocol roadmap, updated Nov. 4.

XRP Ledger transactions currently reveal a public key when users authorize payments through their cryptocurrency wallets. A sufficiently powerful quantum computer could potentially use that exposed key to derive the secret controlling an account. Under the proposed design, account owners would activate a quantum-resistant key and switch off the original one, closing the route through which the existing key could be compromised.

Developers selected ML-DSA-44, a digital signature scheme approved by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2024. The new key and signature require 3,732 bytes, compared with 105 bytes for a regular payment, adding about 3.6 KB to each protected transaction. Including history and database overhead, the Foundation estimates storage of 5,331 bytes per protected payment against a 1,704-byte baseline.

The proposal keeps base fees unchanged. Because XRP Ledger fees are destroyed, network operators would absorb the additional storage requirements. Development remains underway: developers are addressing a mismatch that can cause the Python prototype and the server and JavaScript versions to generate different keys from the same starting seed. Tests examining network behavior when all validators use the new signatures have also not yet been published.

The roadmap allocates $215,000 to $255,000 for review and auditing of the amendment, along with 640 hours of development. Across all 24 amendments, the budget ranges from about $5 million to nearly $6 million. The Foundation’s migration study is scheduled for the first half of 2027, with development and auditing planned for late 2027 or 2028.