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XRP Gets Wrapped by Tokensoft for Ethereum DeFi Debut

Tokensoft’s Wrapped is now taking a multi-custodial approach, having partnered with Hex Trust on wXRP.

Wrapped assets can live away from their native blockchains. (Kari Shea/Unsplash)
Wrapped assets can live away from their native blockchains. (Kari Shea/Unsplash)

Is the XRP Army ready to storm Ethereum?

Announced Friday, Wrapped XRP (wXRP), a digital asset backed 1:1 by XRP, will make the cross-chain jump into Ethereum-based decentralized finance (DeFi) starting in December, courtesy of Wrapped and Hong Kong-based crypto custodian Hex Trust.

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The new connectivity for XRP holders will allow access to various DeFi applications, whether that’s lending and borrowing, or for use in automated market makers (AMMs), said Mason Borda, CEO of Tokensoft, the driving force behind Wrapped.

Making XRP DeFi-compatible in the form of wXRP is a first, said Borda. Wrapped has previously wrapped a range of tokens including bitcoin, zcash and filecoin, among others.

“We do a lot of these wrapped tokens, but we just think this wrapped XRP asset is going to be huge,” Borda said in an interview. “It’s a top ten digital asset and has one of the biggest communities in crypto.”

XRP on DeFi

The XRP Ledger, for its part, has been talking about adding DeFi capabilities to its blockchain via federated sidechains, so the anticipation for greater XRP functionality is already lit among the payment token’s sprawling army of supporters.

Read more: Privacy Coin Zcash Makes Its Ethereum ‘Wrapped’ Debut With Tokensoft and Anchorage

Wrapped started out as a collaborationhttps://www.tokensoft.io/post/tokensoft-partners-with-anchorage-to-bring-wrapped-layer-one-assets-to-ethereum between San Francisco-based Tokensoft and Anchorage, the U.S. regulated crypto custodian, and the two firms have created wrapped versions of nine digital tokens.

Now, Wrapped appears to be spreading its wings and taking a multi-custodian approach to provide interoperability bridging to a wider array of digital assets and tokens.

“Not all custodians support all assets,” Borda said. “So working with multiple custodians opens up the door to a greater selection for users of wrapped assets and just building a more vibrant ecosystem.”

Ian Allison

Ian Allison is a senior reporter at CoinDesk, focused on institutional and enterprise adoption of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. Prior to that, he covered fintech for the International Business Times in London and Newsweek online. He won the State Street Data and Innovation journalist of the year award in 2017, and was runner up the following year. He also earned CoinDesk an honourable mention in the 2020 SABEW Best in Business awards. His November 2022 FTX scoop, which brought down the exchange and its boss Sam Bankman-Fried, won a Polk award, Loeb award and New York Press Club award. Ian graduated from the University of Edinburgh. He holds ETH.

Ian Allison