Ripple, SBI Launch Dollar Stablecoin RLUSD in Japan
Forecast Trend Report by Period
Ripple said Thursday it launched dollar-backed stablecoin Ripple USD, or RLUSD, in Japan with SBI Holdings Inc. and its subsidiary SBI VC Trade.
The launch followed approval from Japan’s Financial Services Agency. RLUSD has been recognized as an electronic payment instrument for foreign-issued stablecoins under Japan’s Payment Services Act, allowing both institutional and retail investors to access the token through SBI VC Trade’s platform.
Ripple and SBI have been working to bring RLUSD to Japan under a memorandum of understanding signed in August 2025. The companies plan to use the launch to broaden the use of regulated stablecoins in Japan and across Asia.
“Japan has been a leading market for digital-asset adoption in terms of regulatory clarity and financial innovation,” Jack McDonald, Ripple’s senior vice president for stablecoins, said. He added that the partnership with SBI Group would help RLUSD connect Japanese companies and individuals more efficiently to global liquidity across payments, asset tokenization and collateral management.
Tomohiko Kondo, chief executive officer of SBI VC Trade, said he was pleased to support RLUSD, a U.S. dollar-based stablecoin. He said Ripple and SBI Group have long worked together around a shared vision of advancing the future of on-chain finance. The introduction of RLUSD marks an important milestone in that partnership, and SBI VC Trade plans to continue expanding RLUSD-based services and use cases.
RLUSD is an enterprise-focused stablecoin backed by U.S. dollar reserve assets and designed around regulatory compliance and transparency. Ripple said the token has reached a market capitalization of about $1.7 billion since its launch late last year and is being used in cross-border payments, business-to-business settlements and supply-chain finance.
Ripple and SBI Group have jointly pursued blockchain-based financial infrastructure and digital-asset businesses in Japan and the broader Asia-Pacific region since 2016. The companies plan to use the RLUSD launch to speed the expansion of a regulated stablecoin ecosystem.
