Can Developers Create XRP out of Thin Air？ XRPL Validator Provides Insight

Recently, Vet, an XRP Ledger dUNL validator, explored the speculative scenario of individuals minting XRP tokens out of nowhere.

In a post on X, Vet asked community members whether it was possible to generate new XRP tokens out of thin air.

Creating XRP out of Thin Air

Notably, this hypothetical scenario assumes the emergence of a bug in the XRPL system that developers could leverage to mint XRP tokens they are not authorized to possess. Given that the XRPL validator was not frankly soliciting public input on the possibility, he provided the answer promptly.

Vet stated that if someone were to discover a bug enabling the creation of XRP out of thin air, the transaction would fail. In particular, the system would raise the “tecINVARIANT_FAILED” error message.

How XRPL Invariant Checker Works

Notably, the Invariant Checker is one of the security features of XRPL. It comprises a series of checks, distinct from regular transaction processing, to ensure that specific functions remain valid across all transactions.

XRPL developers created this mechanism to guarantee the blockchains integrity from yet-to-be-discovered bugs or even those intentionally introduced by bad actors.

The invariant checker operates automatically following each transaction. It scrutinizes the transactions details for accuracy before confirming its outcomes on the ledger.

Specifically, the XRPL invariant checker assesses transaction fees, account roots not deleted, XRP balance, ledger entry types match, trust lines, bad offers, no zero escrow, and valid new account root.

Should the transaction results violate any of the XRPLs regulations, the invariant checker declines it with the “tecINVARIANT_FAILED” result.

Furthermore, the XRPL validator noted that this exception serves as the final safeguard that prevents corruption on the public XRP blockchain.

Interestingly, the Bitcoin network itself fell victim to a bug which resulted in this issue. In August 2010, an attacker exploited the vulnerability in the network to mint 184 billion BTC, earning the bug the title “184 Billion Bitcoin Bug.” Bitcoins anonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto fixed the issue after five hours.