You can also read this news on BH NEWS: SBI Holdings CEO Kitao Reaffirms Confidence in Ripple’s XRP Yoshitaka Kitao, Chairman of SBI Holdings, has reaffirmed his confidence in XRP, Ripple’s n
You can also read this news on BH NEWS: SBI Holdings CEO Kitao Reaffirms Confidence in Ripple’s XRP
Yoshitaka Kitao, Chairman of SBI Holdings, has reaffirmed his confidence in XRP, Ripple’s native cryptocurrency. Addressing a direct question on platform X, Kitao responded emphatically in English, stating “yes” when asked if he still trusts XRP. This exchange highlights growing concerns among XRP holders who recently expressed feelings of being overlooked by Ripple amid recent volatile weeks.
SBI Holdings, a prominent Japanese financial conglomerate with interests spanning banking, brokerage, insurance, and crypto assets, has maintained a robust partnership with Ripple since 2016. Yoshitaka Kitao, who boasts a notable history in finance, having served in leadership roles at Nomura Securities and SoftBank, transformed SoftBank Investment into SBI Holdings in 1999.
The alliance between SBI and Ripple began with a Series B investment round and the establishment of the joint venture, SBI Ripple Asia, in which SBI holds a 60% stake while Ripple retains 40%. That same year, the formation of a Japanese bank consortium sought to integrate Ripple’s technology into payment systems, eventually expanding its reach to over 60 banks. In 2018, the inter-bank payment application MoneyTap was launched, concurrently with the start of XRP trading on what is now known as SBI VC Trade.
Kitao’s unwavering trust in XRP was encapsulated in a succinct, affirmative response: “yes”.
In 2019, Yoshitaka Kitao joined Ripple’s board of directors, underscoring SBI’s commitment to XRP. Beginning in 2020, SBI started offering XRP as shareholder incentives. The group’s subsidiary, SBI Remit, adopted Ripple’s On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) solution, particularly prominent in facilitating remittances along the substantial money transfer corridor between Japan and the Philippines.
ODL is recognized for using XRP to minimize pre-funding requirements in cross-border payments, lending efficiency to the process.
Glossary: ODL stands for “On Demand Liquidity,” a mechanism allowing payment providers to use XRP for instant liquidity in international money transfers.
Despite the legal challenges Ripple faced due to the SEC’s lawsuit initiated in December 2020, extending until 2025, SBI persisted in its support for Ripple. In a message dated February 15, 2026, Kitao debunked rumors of SBI holding $10 billion worth of XRP, clarifying instead that SBI holds about a 9% stake in Ripple Labs, and hinted at potentially higher undisclosed asset values.
Kitao noted that SBI holds “not $10 billion in XRP, but approximately a 9% stake in Ripple Labs,” underscoring the significant valuation of the Ripple ecosystem.
At a quarterly briefing on November 2, 2026, Kitao reiterated XRP’s strategic value, contrasting it with Bitcoin as primarily a store of value, stating that XRP’s value lies in its payment applications and ecosystem usage.
In August 2025, SBI VC Trade and Ripple agreed to introduce the RLUSD stablecoin to Japan. By October 2025, SBI invested $200 million into Evernorth, a company holding XRP in its treasury, as SBI VC Trade reached over 2 million accounts.
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