Japan’s financial regulator has approved Ripple’s U.S. dollar–pegged RLUSD stablecoin as a new category of payment instrument, allowing SBI VC Trade to list it for both institutional and retail customers. Even with the approval, RLUSD remains relatively small, with a market value of around $1.7 billion.
The approval marks RLUSD’s official entry into Japan, one of Asia’s most tightly regulated crypto markets, following clearance from the country’s financial watchdog.
The Japan Financial Services Agency has classified RLUSD as a new form of electronic payment instrument under the Payment Services Act, a designation intended for foreign-issued stablecoins that meet strict domestic standards.
Stablecoins are digital assets designed to maintain a stable value, usually tied to fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar. In Japan, RLUSD will be distributed through SBI VC Trade, the crypto arm of financial group SBI, and made available to both retail and institutional users.
Japan’s stringent regulatory framework makes approval of a foreign-issued stablecoin particularly significant, especially for broad market access.
However, RLUSD’s footprint is still limited. Ripple reports its market capitalization at roughly $1.7 billion since its launch in late 2024, well behind leading stablecoins such as USDT at about $186 billion and USDC at around $74 billion.
The launch builds on a memorandum of understanding signed by Ripple and SBI in August 2025 and extends a partnership that began in 2016 focused on cross-border payments and blockchain infrastructure in Asia.
Ripple SVP Jack McDonald said RLUSD is intended to function as a bridge for payments, tokenization, and collateral management, connecting Japanese businesses to global dollar liquidity.
RLUSD is Ripple’s regulated stablecoin product and is separate from XRP, the company’s native token, with a focus on enterprise settlement and tokenized asset use cases.
The Japan rollout reflects Ripple’s broader push into regulated stablecoin markets as countries including the U.S. and Europe move toward clearer frameworks for digital assets.
Still, competition remains intense. While regulatory approval strengthens RLUSD’s credibility, it still needs to significantly scale liquidity and adoption to compete with dominant stablecoins like USDT and USDC.
