Ripple Tackles XRP Ledger Attack Surface and Prepares for Lending Expansion

Ripple is shrinking the XRP Ledger's attack surface as it prepares to expand native lending capabilities. The company has recommended removing over 10,000 lines of unused XChainBridge code after deciding not to pursue private sidechains that required this feature.

This decision comes as the crypto industry faces renewed pressure to strengthen its defenses, with more than $1.31 billion lost across 344 security incidents in the first half of 2026. Code vulnerabilities remain the most common attack category, appearing in 204 incidents according to CertiK.

Ripple is also subjecting its Lending Protocol V1.1 to an AI-only security review through Sherlock's Audit Engine. The system combines multiple AI auditors and frontier models with specialized security capabilities, adjusting coverage and depth to the protocol being examined.