Inter-exchange Client Address Protocol (ICAP)
Web3 / infrastructure applications
Inter-exchange Client Address Protocol (ICAP) is an Ethereum address encoding standard designed to improve compatibility with traditional banking infrastructure by encoding Ethereum addresses in a format similar to the International Bank Account Number (IBAN) system. ICAP addresses begin with the country code "XE" followed by a checksum and the encoded Ethereum address, making them more recognizable to banking systems and reducing transcription errors. While originally promoted for cross-chain interoperability and institutional adoption, ICAP adoption remained limited as most platforms continued using standard hexadecimal Ethereum addresses, though the protocol remains part of Ethereum's formal specification.
Example
Parity Ethereum wallet initially supported ICAP address generation and validation, allowing users to send transactions using ICAP-formatted addresses that were automatically converted to standard hex addresses on-chain.
Why It Matters
ICAP demonstrates efforts to bridge blockchain systems with legacy financial standards, potentially facilitating institutional adoption and reducing address-related errors in transaction processing.
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