XRP Ledger’s Escrow Upgrade: The Universe Just Got More Secure (Sort Of)

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So, the XRP Ledger has finally activated Token Escrow (XLS-85) on its mainnet, as of February 12th. Yes, that’s right, the same day you probably forgot to water your office plant. This groundbreaking update-because everything in crypto is groundbreaking, apparently-extends the network’s escrow mechanics beyond XRP to include Trustline-based tokens (IOUs) and Multi-Purpose Tokens (MPTs). The amendment sailed through with a whopping 88% consensus (30 out of 34 validators, because even in the future, democracy is a numbers game). It was introduced in the thrillingly named rippled v2.5.0 under the equally thrilling XLS-85 specification.

Escrow, But Make It Fashionable for Every Asset on XRP Ledger

RippleX, in a move that can only be described as “we’re trying to sound important,” framed this change as a broadening of XRPL’s settlement primitives. They announced via X (formerly known as Twitter, because rebranding is the new black):

“Token Escrow (XLS-85) is now live on XRPL Mainnet! This feature extends native escrow functionality beyond XRP to all Trustline-based tokens (IOUs) and Multi-Purpose Tokens (MPTs). From stablecoins like RLUSD to Real World Assets, the XRPL now supports secure, conditional, onchain settlement for all assets.” They added, with a straight face, “The toolbox for Institutional DeFi just got bigger.”

Token Escrow (XLS-85) is now live on XRPL Mainnet!

This feature extends native escrow functionality beyond XRP to all Trustline-based tokens (IOUs) and Multi-Purpose Tokens (MPTs).

From stablecoins like RLUSD to Real World Assets, the XRPL now supports secure, conditional,…

– RippleX (@RippleXDev) February 12, 2026

XRPL.org explains escrow in terms even your grandmother could understand, then proudly declares what the ledger automates: “Traditionally, an escrow is a contract between two parties to facilitate financial transactions… The XRP Ledger takes escrow a step further, replacing the third party with an automated system built into the ledger.” Because why trust humans when you can trust code? With the TokenEscrow amendment, this approach now applies to fungible tokens, not just XRP. Progress, folks.

For Trust Line Tokens, the issuing account must enable the Allow Trust Line Locking flag, because nothing says “trust” like locking things up. For MPTs, the issuer must set Can Escrow and Can Transfer flags at issuance, ensuring those tokens can be both held in escrow and transferred when released. One minor hiccup: issuers can’t create escrows using their own issued tokens, though they can receive escrowed tokens as recipients. Because, you know, rules.

Authorization is also a big deal here. If a token requires authorization, the sender must be pre-authorized by the issuer before creating an escrow, and must be authorized to receive the tokens back if an expired escrow is canceled-regardless of who submits the cancellation. The recipient must also be pre-authorized before an escrow can be finished. It’s like a bureaucratic nightmare, but with blockchain.

XRPL supports time-based, conditional, and combination escrows. The process revolves around EscrowCreate to lock funds, EscrowFinish to release them when conditions are met, and EscrowCancel to return funds once an escrow expires. For token escrows, an expiration time is mandatory, because even code needs deadlines.

This feature isn’t free, of course. XRPL.org notes that escrow “requires two transactions” and that Crypto-Conditions increase fees. The ledger currently only supports PREIMAGE-SHA-256, and fulfillment verification raises EscrowFinish costs. The documentation provides a minimum fee: an EscrowFinish with a fulfillment requires at least 330 drops of XRP plus an additional amount based on fulfillment size, with the formula scaling if fee settings change. Because nothing in life is free, not even in the blockchain.

RippleX highlighted use cases that sound like they were pulled from a corporate buzzword generator: vesting and grants, conditional payments and OTC-style swaps, treasury workflows like legal holds and collateral, and tokenized rights and RWA-style unlocks. The common thread? A native, on-ledger “lock until X” mechanism now available to the token layer, useful for structured settlement, compliance-shaped flows, and predictable release conditions without relying on a third-party custodian or purely off-chain coordination. Essentially, it’s like a Swiss Army knife, but for financial transactions.

At press time, XRP was trading at $1.35. Which, let’s be honest, is probably more exciting than this entire upgrade.

XRP Price Chart

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2026-02-13 13:32