XRP Ledger 3.4.0 Debuts, Bringing Lending Overhaul and Node Fixes

XRP Ledger 3.4.0 Arrives With New Lending Protocol Amendments Today

XRP Ledger version 3.4.0 went live this week, carrying a set of lending amendments, peer-protection fixes and node upgrades that the network's operators have been told to install without delay.

The release lands alongside a separate, and unrelated, development: Ripple Chief Technology Officer Emeritus David Schwartz says his own XRPL hub has grown markedly more stable over the past two weeks, a pattern he has not been able to fully explain.

What follows is an account of what changed in XRP Ledger 3.4.0, what remains pending a validator vote, and what the software update does, and does not, say about XRP price.

The Update, in Brief

XRP Ledger 3.4.0 touches three areas of the network: lending, node reliability, and peer-to-peer defenses.

Two amendments are now open for validator voting. A separate set of node-level fixes is already active with the upgrade.

A Lending Framework Still Awaiting a Vote

The centerpiece of XRP Ledger 3.4.0 is Lending Protocol v1.1, an amendment that adds closed-ended vaults and cash-basis accounting to the ledger's lending framework. It is not active yet.

XRPL lending already operates under the XLS-66 specification, which offers fixed-term loans through Single Asset Vaults.

The design leans on off-chain underwriting and risk assessment rather than requiring on-chain collateral for every loan, a departure from most lending protocols in crypto.

Developers applied formal verification to the lending code, meaning the protocol's behavior was checked with mathematical proofs, in addition to conventional testing.

None of that changes what happens on the ledger today. Installing version 3.4.0 does not switch the lending functions on. XRPL validators must vote to support the amendment, and that support has to hold through an activation period before the network adopts it.

Why Node Operators Are Being Told to Upgrade

Before this release, a server could go on deleting older ledger data even when gaps existed in its recent transaction history, a quirk that risked leaving nodes further behind the network while they cleaned house.

Version 3.4.0 closes that gap, literally. Online deletion now pauses the moment the software detects missing ledger history, keeping a node closer to the latest validated state.

A second amendment, fixCleanup, folds in a string of smaller fixes, extending earlier cleanup work on Single Asset Vaults, lending, and automated market makers.

Among the additions: protection against oversized transaction messages, tighter handling of incoming peer data, stricter validation on certain transaction fields, and safeguards against database operations that could otherwise eat up excessive resources.

Multi-Purpose Token freeze checks were also optimized, so servers stop reading the same ledger data repeatedly to determine whether assets are frozen.

Developers additionally modernized sections of the codebase, replaced aging libraries, and expanded testing infrastructure.

The XRP Ledger Foundation is urging operators to move to 3.4.0 promptly, framing the upgrade as necessary groundwork for the amendments now up for a vote.

Package Location Has Moved

XRPL software packages are now live at packages.xrplf.org, signed with a new XRP Ledger Foundation key. Operators still on version 3.3.0 or earlier need to update their repository configuration before they can install 3.4.0.

For some, that means running additional commands during the upgrade. The XRPL documentation includes manual instructions for Ubuntu installations affected by the repository change.

Schwartz's Private Hub, and a Recovery He Can't Fully Explain

Separately from the software release, Schwartz posted on X on September 17 that his private XRPL hub had logged fewer peer disconnects over a two-week stretch, with active connections back above 500, near a two-week high of 509.

He said he does not know the cause. In a follow-up, he noted dryly that someone might simply be running "meaningless inbound stable connections" just to keep him satisfied. A brief dip around September 15 and 16, he clarified, was a monitoring glitch rather than an actual drop in connections.

The recovery follows a rougher stretch. In July, the hub was logging recurring message errors and shedding peers.

A network-wide manifest-flood episode in late August pushed things further, and by early September the hub was holding around 400 connections. It has since climbed back past 500.

Schwartz's hub also went dark briefly during the xrpld 3.2.0 upgrade last year, evidence, he has said, of how quickly peer counts can slide when the network is under stress. The current trend runs in the opposite direction.

XRP Ledger 3.4.0 shipped with its own peer-protection improvements, and the timing invites an obvious question. Schwartz has not confirmed the upgrade is behind the change. For now, the cause remains open.

What the Hub Recovery Does, and Doesn't, Signal

Schwartz's hub functions as a high-capacity relay linking UNL validators, other hubs, and application servers. It is not itself a consensus validator.

A hub holding more than 500 healthy connections is a reasonable signal that one major public relay is no longer under strain, information that matters to network operators. It is not, on its own, a signal for traders.

Separately, spot XRP ETFs have drawn more than $1.7 billion in inflows even as XRP price has struggled under pressure tied to the Senate's failed CLARITY Act cloture vote. Peer counts on one hub and ETF demand are distinct measures of two different things, and neither substitutes for the other.

Some accounts on social media have tied the hub update to an older Schwartz remark about XRP potentially overtaking bitcoin's market capitalization, and to unrelated token promotions.

Those threads are worth separating from what actually happened this week. Schwartz himself has been clear that his hub is one node among many in the network, not a proxy for its health and not a case for speculation.

XRP Price Today

Spot XRP ETF inflows and hub stability are one part of the picture. Price action tells a different, more immediate story.

XRP is trading below a level that has flipped from support to resistance since a prior selloff, and the technical setup argues for caution.

A daily close above $1.3300 would be the first indication that buyers are returning. A close below $1.2950 opens a path toward $1.1815, the next major Fibonacci level.

The Ichimoku Cloud, a widely used trend-tracking indicator, currently points bearish. XRP trades beneath both cloud boundaries, with the Tenkan-sen at $1.3714 and the Kijun-sen at $1.3999, both above the current price, meaning the token has lost several short- and medium-term trend levels.

Two scenarios follow from here. If XRP holds above $1.2950 and reclaims $1.3300, the next test is the resistance band between $1.3802 and $1.40, reinforced by both the cloud and the 0.618 Fibonacci retracement.

If the $1.2950 floor gives way, the next levels in view are $1.1815 and, in a deeper pullback, $1.1230.

A confirmed close above $1.4900 would mark a more meaningful shift in the broader range, though that level remains well out of reach from current prices.

Further out, a Fibonacci extension drawn from the August low near $0.9887 to the high near $1.6962 points to longer-range targets at $1.5112, $1.5967, and a zone between $1.9644 and $2.1208.

Those targets are only relevant if XRP first reclaims the $1.6962 high, a move that looks distant for now.

For today, the situation reduces to one threshold. XRP needs a daily close above $1.3300 to give buyers a foothold. Until then, $1.2950 stands as the last line of defense.

By the Numbers

Disclaimer

This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency markets are volatile and involve significant risk. XRP price movements, network upgrades, and lending amendments discussed here do not guarantee future performance or returns. Always do your own research and consult a licensed financial advisor before making investment decisions.