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The XRP Ledger Foundation has published research proposing ML-DSA-44 post-quantum signatures across XRP accounts, network validators and validator list publishers, with full quantum readiness targeted for 2028, according to Bitcoin.com News. The study appeared in the Foundation’s 2027 protocol roadmap and sets out the engineering work, storage overhead and costs required to get there.
Bitcoin.com News reported on November 10 that the proposal would let users and operators swap existing cryptographic keys for alternatives built to resist attacks from sufficiently powerful quantum computers. XRP Ledger accounts currently rely on secp256k1 or Ed25519 signatures, both of which Shor’s algorithm could theoretically break.
Also read: Banks and regulators join quantum-resistant crypto transfer pilot
Key facts
- The Foundation’s quantum research targets ML-DSA-44 for accounts, validators and validator list publishers, extending Ripple’s previously announced 2028 goal with a detailed work assessment.
- A quantum-protected payment would consume about 5,331 bytes of storage against a 1,704-byte baseline, an increase of roughly 213%, per Bitcoin.com News.
- The Foundation estimates 640 development hours plus 400 review hours, with review, auditing and related expenses of $215,000 to $255,000, excluding the initial development effort.
- A migration study is scheduled for the first half of 2027, with development, review and auditing in late 2027 or 2028. No mainnet activation date has been approved.
- Ripple published a four-phase quantum security strategy in April 2026 that includes work with security firm Project Eleven on hybrid signing research and a post-quantum custody wallet prototype.
Size and cost of the change
The Foundation’s figures put the added data burden in detail. A single ML-DSA-44 public key measures 1,312 bytes and its signature 2,420 bytes, crypto.news reported, totaling 3,732 bytes versus 105 bytes for the equivalent key and signature in a conventional XRP transaction. Once transaction history and database overhead are counted, the estimate reaches the 5,331-byte figure.
crypto.news broke the budget down further: $40,000 to $80,000 for Ripple’s review work, $100,000 for an external security audit, $50,000 for a reference implementation and $25,000 for Ledger hardware wallet and other wallet updates. Across all 24 amendments in the 2027 roadmap, the Foundation estimates 6,240 development hours, 6,560 review hours and spending of $5.08 million to $5.74 million. The quantum amendment has no assigned XLS number yet.
Fee treatment and open questions
The reports do not conflict on the fee point but frame it differently. ZyCrypto described the proposal as a “fee-free” upgrade, while crypto.news said the amendment retains the existing base transaction fee rather than introducing a new charge. The XRP Ledger’s minimum standard fee is 10 drops of XRP, though congestion can push costs higher.
Under the design outlined by crypto.news, account owners could assign an ML-DSA-44 signing key and disable their existing master key, so transactions can no longer be authorized with the older credentials. Addresses would not need to change. The Foundation identified exchanges, custodians and institutions holding substantial balances as likely early adopters, ZyCrypto noted that holders would not have to alter how they store or access XRP.
The research still flags unresolved questions on transaction fees, account migration and compatibility with existing software. Simply adding a quantum-resistant regular key would not fully protect an account if its original vulnerable master key stayed enabled. Developers must also reconcile key-generation differences between the Python prototype, the server implementation and the JavaScript implementation, which currently derive different keys from the same seed, according to crypto.news. An implementation has been tested on AlphaNet.
Why it matters
No quantum computer has yet demonstrated the ability to break the cryptography securing major blockchains, but the Foundation argues that preparing early is essential because replacing cryptographic systems on a live network can take years. Validators use signatures to authenticate transactions and coordinate consensus, and trusted list publishers help decide which operators take part, so a break in those systems could let attackers impersonate legitimate participants.
The XRP Ledger is not working alone. Bitcoin developers are weighing BIP 360, a new output type intended to reduce public-key exposure, and longtime Bitcoin Core developer Cory Fields has proposed planting secret “quantum landmines” to make attempted thefts costly. Ethereum has folded quantum resistance into its longer-term roadmap with validator and account authentication changes targeted around 2029, Solana developers have explored the Falcon signature scheme, and Starknet is researching a move from Ethereum Layer 2 to an independent Layer 1 partly to control its own post-quantum roadmap.
What to watch
The next concrete step is the migration study in the first half of 2027, which will address how existing accounts move to the new framework, wallet compatibility and validator performance under quantum-resistant signatures. Full deployment remains subject to development work and the XRP Ledger’s amendment approval process, and no mainnet activation date has been approved.
Reported by Bitcoin.com News.
Sources: Bitcoin.com News, ZyCrypto, crypto.news