David Schwartz proposed a transaction reservation system for the XRP Ledger as users debate front-running risks on XRP (XRP) trading venues.
Key Points:
- Schwartz suggested a ReservedTxns ledger object to help original transactions execute before on-chain disclosure.
- Users would reserve limited slots by paying at least twice the normal transaction fee.
- XRP held near $1.03 to $1.05, while futures open interest rose during upgrade voting.
XRP Ledger
Schwartz, the former Ripple chief technology officer and one of the ledger’s core developers, outlined the plan after community members raised concerns about pending transaction visibility.
Users said validators and well-connected nodes can inspect transactions before validation, assess profitable trades and submit competing orders to gain better positions. The risk matters most on decentralized exchange and automated market maker activity, where slippage can turn a normal trade into worse execution.
The XRP Ledger already mixes transaction order to reduce front-running, but critics said that design may not fully stop sandwich attacks.
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Schwartz Proposal
Schwartz said he was “not that concerned about this issue,” but added that a “fairly simple scheme” could eliminate the attack.
His proposal would create ReservedTxns, a ledger object holding transaction IDs for a specific future ledger. A new TxnReserve transaction type would let users book a slot for at least double the standard fee, with reservations limited to the next 16 ledgers and capped at 32 slots per ledger.
Once reserved, the transaction would be broadcast only after the previous ledger’s consensus set is known. Reserved transactions would then execute first, in reservation order, before other transactions in that ledger.
Schwartz said normal execution rules would still apply, and the higher fee would add denial-of-service protection. Attackers trying to clog reserved slots would have to keep paying, while others could wait them out.
Market data showed XRP holding between $1.03 and $1.05 over 24 hours, with trading volume up 25%. CoinGlass data showed total XRP futures open interest rising 0.80% to $2.36 billion in four hours as XRP Ledger 3.2.0 upgrade voting continued.
The debate follows a fragile stretch for XRP, with analyst Crypto Tony warning that the token was near inflection points and could face a 30% drop if support breaks.
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