How a payment happens · Lesson 4 of 4

Escrow: payments that wait

Escrow locks XRP or tokens in the ledger until a time passes or a condition is met.

In everyday life, an escrow is a trusted third party who holds money until a deal's conditions are met. The XRP Ledger builds that in: an escrow locks up XRP or tokens, and nobody can use them until the conditions are met.

An escrow can wait for a time (the funds can be released once a moment has passed), for a condition (they're released only to someone who supplies the right fulfillment), or for both.

If an escrow has an expiry time and isn't finished before it, it can be canceled, and the funds go back to the sender. While an escrow waits, it counts toward the sender's reserve.

A well-known example: in 2017, Ripple placed 55 billion XRP in escrow so that the amount reaching general circulation would grow at a predictable pace.

Sources

• Escrow (xrpl.org) (checked 2026-10-22)
• What is XRP? (xrpl.org) (checked 2026-10-22)

General information about how the XRP Ledger works, not financial, legal or tax advice.