Crypto Network — The XRP Ledger (XRPL) has rolled out a major platform upgrade extending its native escrow feature to all tokens issued on the network, a move expected to deepen its utility for developers, institutions, and decentralized finance use cases. The enhancement, known as the XLS 85 Token Escrow amendment, was activated on February 12, 2026, after achieving strong validator consensus on the XRPL mainnet.
What Changed?
Previously, escrow on the XRP Ledger was limited to XRP, the network’s native cryptocurrency. Escrow allows assets to be locked on chain and released only when predefined conditions are met — such as reaching a specific time or satisfying contractual requirements. With the XLS 85 upgrade now live, trustline based tokens (IOUs) and Multi Purpose Tokens (MPTs) created on the ledger can also be placed into escrow directly at the protocol level.
This means that stablecoins, tokenized real world assets like tokenized bonds or gold representations, and other issued tokens can benefit from secure conditional settlement without needing external tools or custom logic.
Expanded Use Cases and Financial Tools
By broadening native escrow support beyond XRP, the XRPL enables a wider range of programmable settlement features, including:
• Token vesting and distribution schedules for projects and teams
• Conditional payments and automated transactions
• Treasury management and collateral locking for institutional workflows
• Structured products and real world asset settlement
• Conditional stablecoin transfers and payout systems
Developers can now create decentralized applications (dApps) that leverage escrow conditions directly at the ledger level, reducing reliance on third party contracts and improving both security and transparency.
Issuer Control and Requirements
To use escrow for a specific token, issuers must set flags that allow their assets to be escrowed. This issuer controlled permission preserves regulatory and governance preferences while enabling new capabilities for token holders and platforms.
The XRPL also requires a small reserve of XRP — currently 0.2 XRP — for each escrow object created, which ensures that contract data remains valid on the ledger and ties network usage to the native token.
Broader Implications and Adoption
Industry observers see the XLS 85 upgrade as a key step in positioning the XRP Ledger for broader institutional adoption. By embedding escrow support natively for all assets, the platform can more easily support regulated finance, stablecoin ecosystems, and tokenized digital economies — areas of growing interest among enterprises exploring blockchain infrastructure.
With the escrow feature now activated network wide, XRPL strengthens its settlement primitives and builds momentum toward becoming a more comprehensive platform for digital asset issuance and on chain financial contracts.