In today's era of globalization, cross-border business exchanges are becoming more frequent. However, international remittances and payments are still a huge pain point. High fees, lengthy arrival times, and complicated processes are all a pain for merchants and individuals. So, is there a new payment method that can allow value to flow as freely as information?
1. The proposal of XRP: a revolutionary solution based on blockchain technology
In recent years, the rise of cryptocurrencies represented by Bitcoin has provided a solution to this problem: decentralization. Through peer-to-peer networks and distributed ledgers, cryptocurrencies can achieve fast and low-cost global payments without third-party intermediaries. However, proof-of-work (PoW) mechanisms such as Bitcoin also have defects such as long confirmation time and low throughput.
and$XRP The Ripple protocol, which is its underlying protocol, has made significant innovations on this basis. It proposes a new consensus mechanism, the Ripple Protocol Consensus Algorithm (RPCA), which aims to achieve safe and fast transaction confirmation and greatly improve efficiency.
2. The core of XRP: a distributed consensus algorithm based on trust
As described in the white paper, the key to RPCA is the introduction of the concept of a trusted node list (UNL). Each node maintains a UNL, which contains other nodes it "trusts". The trust here does not require that every node in the UNL is honest, but rather that they are unlikely to collude. UNL is like a "circle of friends", where everyone knows each other and forms a small trust network.
During the consensus process, each node only refers to the votes of other nodes in its UNL. When a proposal receives 80% of the votes in the UNL, it can be passed and written into the ledger. It can be seen that this consensus mechanism based on trust voting is very similar to the business and social operations in the real world - we often rely on the judgment of the "circle of acquaintances" to make decisions.
The entire consensus process includes multiple rounds of incremental voting, and the final round requires 80% of UNL members to agree. On the one hand, this raises the passing threshold and ensures security; on the other hand, the first few rounds of voting can help quickly discover and eliminate problematic nodes and improve efficiency. In theory, when the scale of UNL exceeds 100 nodes, even if 10% of the nodes are malicious, it is difficult to disrupt the consensus.
So, how does RPCA prevent network splits and avoid forks? The key lies in the connectivity between UNLs. According to theoretical analysis, as long as the intersection of any two UNLs is greater than 20% of their respective totals, it is sufficient to avoid forks. And by carefully selecting trusted nodes that are widely distributed around the world, this requirement can be easily met. In short, the UNL mechanism minimizes the difficulty of reaching consensus while ensuring decentralization, taking into account both security and efficiency.
3. XRP’s Vision: Opening the Era of Value Internet
Based on RPCA, the XRP network can complete transaction confirmation within seconds, which is much faster than other blockchain projects such as Ethereum and comparable to centralized payment systems such as Visa. The ultimate vision of the XRP network is to build a global value Internet. By connecting various financial entities such as banks and payment institutions, XRP allows different currencies and different assets to be seamlessly exchanged, resolving the fragmentation of the current payment system. Users can make cross-border remittances as easily as sending emails, without having to endure high fees and long waits.
Moreover, the XRP network is open, and third-party developers are encouraged to join and jointly improve the ecosystem. In the future, people can not only exchange currencies, but also various assets such as stocks, bonds, and gold. The Ripple protocol is expected to become a global infrastructure for the flow of value, empowering ordinary people and small and medium-sized enterprises, so that everyone can participate in the global economy. When value flows freely like information, it will release huge productivity, achieve inclusive finance, and create a more equal and open future.
