Momentum around distributed ledger technologies is accelerating in Asia’s payments market, with Japan-based fintech platform Stronghold Japan suggesting that this transformation may take shape in the country particularly through the XRP ecosystem. Listed on the Forbes FinTech 50, the company points to four key factors driving this shift.
Japan Philippines corridor and cost advantages
According to Stronghold Japan’s analysis, the first factor is the Japan Philippines cross border payment corridor developed by SBI Remit. Bank trials confirmed that settling directly with XRP reduces costs by 60 percent compared to SWIFT. Total transaction volume over SBI’s payment infrastructure has surpassed 15 billion dollars.
Bank trials revealed that direct settlement with XRP slashed costs by 60 percent compared to SWIFT, and total volume on the SBI infrastructure has now exceeded 15 billion dollars.
SBI Remit, the remittance arm of Japan’s financial giant SBI Holdings, is especially active along Asia’s cross border payment routes. The company’s work is seen as one of the leading real-world examples of XRP’s use in institutional payments.
Liquidity pools and new technical infrastructure
The second core element is the rise of liquidity pools, or Automated Market Maker (AMM) structures, along Asian corridors. These pools are rapidly growing, with a target monthly volume of nearly 24 million dollars for June. This model gives major players an automatic, low cost way to swap regional currencies without being tied to traditional exchanges.
Mini glossary: AMM (Automated Market Maker) is a system where trades are executed using liquidity pools instead of the conventional order book. In this model, prices are determined automatically by the ratio of assets in the pool.
A third spotlight falls on a new sidechain built on Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) technology, which is now attracting large enterprises. To automate settlement processes, these firms have activated around 1,400 smart contracts on the network, with gas fees settled using XRP.
Mini glossary: A sidechain is an additional network that runs alongside the main blockchain but processes transactions independently. Compatibility with the Ethereum Virtual Machine allows smart contracts developed for Ethereum to be used seamlessly on similar infrastructure.
Regulatory actions and testing in banking
Public initiatives across Asia represent the fourth driver identified by Stronghold Japan. By the second quarter of 2026, Ripple will have signed fresh agreements with central banks, further supported by enhancements to Japan’s securities and financial instruments regulations and the ongoing digitization of the yen.
During the same period, integration is expected to extend into retail banking as well. Stronghold Japan has activated its own cross-chain bridge for XRPL, while SBI Shinsei Bank has begun piloting a program allowing customers to directly receive interest in XRP from standard time deposit-like accounts.
All eyes on XRPL’s June 15 update
Experts say the market’s next move will become clearer after June 15, when the XRPL network receives a core upgrade to version 3.2.0. The update aims to reduce server node loads for banks by 40 percent and will also rename the software from rippled to xrpld.
