Japanese financial conglomerate SBI has formed new blockchain partnerships with USDC issuer Circle, XRP developer Ripple, and the Web3 company Startale.
SBI Group announced these three distinct partnerships on Friday, which include stablecoin collaborations with US companies Circle and Ripple, as well as a new tokenization project with Singapore-based Startale.
In collaboration with Startale, SBI plans to create an onchain trading platform for tokenized stocks and real-world assets (RWAs) to facilitate 24/7 trading.
Through its stablecoin partnerships with Ripple and Circle, SBI aims to explore innovative ways to promote the adoption of Circle’s USDC (USDC) and Ripple’s Ripple USD (RLUSD) stablecoin.
Joint Circle venture versus RLUSD distribution
While the Circle announcement mentions a joint venture with SBI, the partnership with Ripple focuses on establishing RLUSD distribution in Japan via SBI’s crypto subsidiary, SBI VC Trade.
“The creation of this joint venture aims to promote the use of USDC in Japan and develop new use cases in the Web3 and digital finance sectors,” SBI stated.
The Ripple announcement highlights a new memorandum of understanding with Ripple Labs concerning the distribution of RLUSD in Japan, with SBI VC Trade planning to make the stablecoin available during the fiscal year ending March 2026.
Source: Ripple
“The introduction of RLUSD will not only broaden the stablecoin options available in the Japanese market, but it marks a significant advancement in the reliability and convenience of stablecoins within Japan,” stated SBI VC Trade CEO Tomohiko Kondo.
Related: China examines yuan-backed stablecoins as part of a major policy shift: Reuters
SBI had previously announced similar partnerships with both Circle and Ripple, with SBI VC Trade completing registration to support USDC operations in March. The Japanese conglomerate has maintained a long-standing collaboration with Ripple, facilitating various XRP (XRP) services across its platforms for several years.
Startale collaboration enhances RWA trend
As part of its collaboration with Startale, SBI secured “milestone-based committed funding” to establish an onchain tokenized platform in Japan.
This development aligns with numerous tokenization initiatives worldwide, as companies like Gemini, Kraken, and Robinhood have introduced comparable 24/7 trading platforms offering tokenized stocks of firms such as Michael Saylor’s Strategy (MSTR) earlier this year.
“As tokenized RWAs facilitate 24/7 real-time settlement and achieve unprecedented liquidity and capital efficiency, the convergence of traditional finance and DeFi is likely to accelerate,” stated SBI CEO Yoshitaka Kitao.
Total RWA market chart and main components as of Thursday. Source: RWA.xyz
“We anticipate that this movement will ultimately lead to the digitalization of capital markets themselves, including exchanges,” the executive remarked, adding:
“By leveraging this trend alongside our corporate ecosystem and Startale’s blockchain technology, we have significant expectations for creating a new decentralized platform.”
The announcement did not specify the anticipated launch date for the platform with Startale or the blockchain network that would be utilized in the venture. Startale is recognized for co-developing Sony’s layer-2 blockchain Soneium and Astar Network.
“We’re not prepared to disclose the technical architecture just yet,” Startale Group CEO Sota Watanabe told Cointelegraph.
“What matters is the joint venture’s mission: to provide a compliant, always-on trading platform for tokenized assets,” Watanabe stated, mentioning that the timeline will be unveiled at a later date.
Related: Scaramucci plans to tokenize $300M in assets, nearly doubling Avalanche’s RWA base
Cointelegraph reached out to SBI for comments regarding the joint tokenization project but had not received a response by the time of publication.
SBI’s initiatives come as significant financial entities globally are experimenting with the tokenization of traditional assets. Earlier on Friday, Bloomberg reported that Eric Trump plans to visit Tokyo in September as part of his family’s expanding efforts in the cryptocurrency sector.
Magazine: Stablecoins in Japan and China, India considers changes to crypto tax: Asia Express
