Same here. Non-destructive editing is standard right now. If I want to stay in Affinity, I have to have 3 copies of a photo:
1. The big .cr2 <- for backup purposes
2. The big .afphoto <- for RAW processing (+ optional retouching)
3. The export .jpg <- for sharing
A tiny xmp file is IMO ten times as good as than any 1-big-file-database-chunks that are created by these photo library apps today, because xmps easily can be copied, batch-processed and archived with the photos.
Please add xmp support for RAW only processing! Doing a retouch is another beast...
PS: Many people desperately search for something like Bridge for M1 Macs. A simple media asset app with RAW and Affinity file support.
Adobe is a dead horse on this subject, and there is nothing else well done for Affinity files...!