Ripple Expands Institutional Offerings with Tokenized Debt Product and Upcoming EVM Sidechain

Guggenheim Treasury Services, an investment firm, has launched digital commercial paper (DCP) on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), as reported by Bloomberg.

This offering consists of tokenized promissory notes issued by the fintech startup Zeconomy, backed by U.S. Treasury bonds. It takes advantage of XRPL’s benefits, including 24/7 trading, quick transaction execution, and minimal fees. In this collaboration, Ripple is investing $10 million into Guggenheim’s DCP initiative.

The issuance of these notes is facilitated by Great Bridge Capital Co., a special purpose entity set up by Guggenheim to protect investors from bankruptcy risks. The product has received a top rating from Moody’s for money market instruments, categorized as Prime-1.

This XRPL launch marks an expansion for Guggenheim, who first introduced the DCP on the Ethereum network in September 2024. Since then, around $20.5 million in notes have been issued on the blockchain.

This development signifies the increasing interest from institutional investors in the RWA market. According to RWA.xyz, as of this writing, there is $7.24 billion locked in tokenized Treasury securities and U.S. bonds.

To attract new projects and developers, XRPL will also enhance its technical capabilities by launching a sidechain supporting EVM in the second quarter of 2025.

David Schwartz, the Chief Technology Officer of Ripple, announced the timeline for the sidechain at the Apex 2025 event in Singapore, with confirmation from key project developer Peersyst.

This new sidechain will merge XRPL’s low transaction costs with Ethereum’s smart contract functionality. Ripple and Peersyst are developing it using the evmOS software stack.

The sidechain will connect to the main XRP Ledger through a cross-chain bridge, utilizing the Axelar protocol as an exclusive solution. This will enable asset transfers, including wrapped XRP (wXRP), which will serve as the native token for gas fees.

Currently, the sidechain is operational in a test network, with a mainnet launch expected to follow further testing and partnerships with validators.

As a reminder, on April 8, Teucrium Investment Advisors, a firm managing alternative assets, introduced the first XRP ETF in the U.S.