XRP Ledger v3.2.0 upgrade reaches 89% validator support as activation nears

The XRP Ledger's latest software upgrade has cleared the validator adoption threshold needed for activation, though the broader network and a bundled security amendment still lag behind.

More than 89% of validators on the XRP Ledger's default Unique Node List have upgraded to v3.2.0, surpassing the 80% threshold required for the software to activate, XRPSCAN data shows.

"The validator count is what matters for activation, but the gap between validators and general nodes creates operational risk for exchanges and infrastructure providers that haven't updated," said Jason Wu, on-chain analyst at Edgen.

Of the 35 validators on the default UNL, 31 are running v3.2.0, according to XRPSCAN. Across the broader network of about 833 active nodes, only 43% have upgraded, while 51% remain on the older v3.1.3. The software, released June 15, includes infrastructure improvements, bug fixes and the official renaming of the core server software from rippled to xrpld under the XLS-0095 proposal.

The upgrade needs sustained support from more than 80% of trusted validators for two consecutive weeks to fully activate. A separate on-ledger amendment bundled with the software, fixCleanup3_2_0, which packages security fixes for the lending protocol, single-asset vaults and multi-purpose tokens, is polling at just 40% — far below the activation threshold. Validators that fail to upgrade before the amendment activates risk being cut off from the ledger in what the network calls an amendment-blocked state.

The adoption gap between validators and general nodes is not unusual for XRP Ledger upgrades, but the margin is wider than in previous releases. The previous version, v3.1.3, still commands a majority of node operators, suggesting some infrastructure providers are waiting to see the amendment pass before committing to the upgrade.

Ripple, the payments company whose founders created the XRP Ledger, has voted in favor of the fixCleanup3_2_0 amendment, according to the company's validator. The amendment adds invariant checks to prevent deleted accounts from leaving ledger artifacts and introduces a feature allowing users to access protocol information without running a server.

XRP price context

XRP traded near $1.08 this week, recovering slightly from a rough June that saw the token close at $1.04, down 22% for the month. That close broke below the $1.26 support level that had held since 2023 and pushed the token below its 50-month exponential moving average for the first time in more than three years.

The upgrade progress provides a counterweight to the bearish technical picture. Standard Chartered's Geoffrey Kendrick has a $2.80 base case and an $8.00 bull target for XRP, though both depend on the CLARITY Act passing and ETF inflows reaching $10 billion — neither of which has materialized. The CLARITY Act, which would treat XRP as a commodity under US law, missed its expected early-July vote and has slipped to late July or possibly August.

The next key level for XRP sits at $1.26 — a monthly close back above that shelf would flip the near-term bias. Below $1.00, the next support cluster sits between $0.93 and $0.76, a zone that appears in most current price models.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.