Key Takeaways
- • Institutional demand exists, but megabank-issued stablecoins command trust: A Nomura and Laser Digital survey of 518 Japanese investment professionals (conducted December 2025–January 2026, released April 16) found 63% see stablecoin use cases across treasury management, cross-border payments, crypto investing, and tokenized securities—but stablecoins issued by major financial institutions earned the highest institutional trust across JPY, USD, and EUR denominations.
- • Ripple's deep Japan infrastructure failed to overcome institutional preference for megabank alternatives: Despite nearly a decade of operational presence through SBI Ripple Asia (established via SBI's 2016 investment), XRP-based remittance corridors spanning the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia, and SBI VC Trade distribution of RLUSD announced in August 2025, crypto-branded stablecoins face adoption headwinds driven by institutional confidence in traditional financial institution issuers.
- • Japan exposes the structural limits of crypto-native stablecoin issuers: Even in Ripple's strongest market—where it benefits from pre-existing retail familiarity, regulated local partners, and operational remittance infrastructure—institutional capital shows preference for stablecoins backed by established megabanks rather than crypto-native competitors.
- • Market readiness for stablecoins is present; distribution advantage is insufficient: The 63% institutional recognition of stablecoin utility demonstrates Japan's openness to the asset class, indicating that Ripple's challenge is not market education but competitive positioning against financially-established issuers.
Summary
Ripple faces a critical competitive constraint in Japan—historically its most promising institutional market—as institutional investors demonstrate strong preference for stablecoins issued by megabanks over crypto-native alternatives, according to a survey released April 16, 2026. The finding underscores a structural limitation for Ripple's RLUSD despite the company's substantial operational footprint in the region.
Ripple's position in Japan appeared uniquely advantaged. The company has operated through SBI Ripple Asia, a joint venture stemming from SBI's 2016 investment, providing nearly a decade of regional infrastructure presence. SBI Remit began using Ripple Payments in 2017 and expanded XRP-based remittance corridors into the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia by September 2023. When Ripple and SBI announced in August 2025 that SBI VC Trade would distribute RLUSD in Japan, the move represented a logical extension of an established partnership. SBI VC Trade's own investor materials identify XRP as one of its most popular crypto assets among customers, suggesting retail traction for Ripple's ecosystem.
However, a joint survey by Nomura and Laser Digital—conducted between December 2025 and January 2026 and covering 518 Japanese investment professionals—reveals institutional sentiment diverges sharply from retail adoption patterns. While 63% of respondents identified potential uses for stablecoins across treasury management, cross-border payments, crypto investing, and tokenized securities, institutional trust concentrated heavily on stablecoins issued by major financial institutions. Across JPY, USD, and EUR denominations, megabank-issued stablecoins drew the highest confidence levels among professionals.
This dynamic reveals that Ripple's distribution advantages—pre-existing retail familiarity, regulated local partners, and operational remittance infrastructure—are insufficient to overcome institutional preference for stablecoins backed by traditional financial establishment credibility. Japan, long considered one of Ripple's friendliest proving grounds due to its advanced fintech regulation and openness to crypto innovation, has become the visible boundary where crypto-branded stablecoins encounter institutional skepticism. The gap between 63% awareness of stablecoin utility and actual adoption of RLUSD suggests market education is not the constraint; rather, competitive positioning against financially-established alternatives presents a structural headwind that Ripple's operational partnerships cannot fully overcome.
Ripple's position in Japan appeared uniquely advantaged. The company has operated through SBI Ripple Asia, a joint venture stemming from SBI's 2016 investment, providing nearly a decade of regional infrastructure presence. SBI Remit began using Ripple Payments in 2017 and expanded XRP-based remittance corridors into the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia by September 2023. When Ripple and SBI announced in August 2025 that SBI VC Trade would distribute RLUSD in Japan, the move represented a logical extension of an established partnership. SBI VC Trade's own investor materials identify XRP as one of its most popular crypto assets among customers, suggesting retail traction for Ripple's ecosystem.
However, a joint survey by Nomura and Laser Digital—conducted between December 2025 and January 2026 and covering 518 Japanese investment professionals—reveals institutional sentiment diverges sharply from retail adoption patterns. While 63% of respondents identified potential uses for stablecoins across treasury management, cross-border payments, crypto investing, and tokenized securities, institutional trust concentrated heavily on stablecoins issued by major financial institutions. Across JPY, USD, and EUR denominations, megabank-issued stablecoins drew the highest confidence levels among professionals.
This dynamic reveals that Ripple's distribution advantages—pre-existing retail familiarity, regulated local partners, and operational remittance infrastructure—are insufficient to overcome institutional preference for stablecoins backed by traditional financial establishment credibility. Japan, long considered one of Ripple's friendliest proving grounds due to its advanced fintech regulation and openness to crypto innovation, has become the visible boundary where crypto-branded stablecoins encounter institutional skepticism. The gap between 63% awareness of stablecoin utility and actual adoption of RLUSD suggests market education is not the constraint; rather, competitive positioning against financially-established alternatives presents a structural headwind that Ripple's operational partnerships cannot fully overcome.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.