We recently assessed how much the XRP price could rise if every bank in Japan started leveraging the token’s bridge capability for banking operations.
Today, XRP trades around the $2 level, but most market participants argue that this price does not yet reflect the crypto asset’s long-term utility. They believe broader adoption could lead to higher valuations, especially if major financial institutions adopt XRP.
One market that could make a difference for XRP is the Japanese financial scene, where Ripple and XRP have built longstanding ties to the banking and payments sector.
Japan’s Large Banking Industry
Notably, Japan operates one of the world’s largest banking industries by total assets. The sector revolves around three dominant megabanks, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, and Mizuho Financial Group, alongside a wide network of regional banks, shinkin cooperative banks, and other financial institutions.
According to the latest comprehensive data from the Bank of Japan, domestically licensed banks held approximately 1,447 trillion yen in total assets as of the end of November 2024, equivalent to about $9.65 trillion.
Meanwhile, by February 2025, total deposits across all financial institutions reached around 1,047 trillion yen, or $6.98 trillion, representing a year-on-year increase of 1.4%.
However, growth slowed later in the year, with estimates suggesting deposits rose to between 1,060 and 1,070 trillion yen by November 2025, reflecting annual growth of about 1.5%. Ordinary deposits accounted for about 650 trillion yen, while time deposits stood near 225 trillion yen as of late February 2025.
Notably, loan-to-deposit ratios in August 2025 ranged from about 40% to 50% for major banks, 50% to 60% for regional lenders, and 60% to 70% for shinkin banks. Securities holdings reached roughly 300 to 350 trillion yen by the end of August 2025, making up about 40% of total assets.
Interestingly, the country hosts around 100 city and regional banks, roughly 250 shinkin banks, and about 13,500 domestic branches as of September 2024. Collectively, Japanese banks control close to 10% of global banking assets.
XRP Price if All Japanese Banks Use It
Given this scale, widespread use of XRP as a bridge asset for settlements could materially affect its price. To assess how much this impact could be, we asked Google Gemini to estimate how high XRP might trade under an aggressive adoption scenario.
In response, Google Gemini put XRP’s current market cap near $120 billion, considering the $2 price. The chatbot then compared this valuation to the $9.65 trillion in assets held by Japanese banks and assumed, for modeling purposes, that XRP’s market cap could grow to 10% of that asset base.
Under this assumption, XRP’s market value would rise to about $965 billion. Dividing that figure by the circulating supply produces a hypothetical price of roughly $16.08 per XRP, representing an increase of about 800% from current levels.
Gemini admitted that this scenario remains extreme because settlement assets typically do not mirror balance sheet totals, and XRP would primarily support liquidity and transaction flows rather than represent bank assets directly.
XRP Already Establishing Relationships in Japan
Importantly, XRP has already begun establishing relationships with Japanese financial institutions. In 2016, Ripple partnered with SBI Holdings to form SBI Ripple Asia, a joint venture designed to promote Ripple’s enterprise payment solutions across Asia, including Japan.
That same year, SBI Holdings invested in Ripple’s $55 million Series B funding round, alongside other global banks, helping expand Ripple’s footprint in the region. Mizuho Financial Group also joined Ripple’s network during this period.
By 2017, SBI Ripple Asia launched the Japan Bank Consortium, bringing together 61 Japanese banks that represented more than 80% of the country’s banking assets. Pilot programs using Ripple’s RC Cloud platform enabled real-time settlements for dozens of banks and laid the groundwork for future XRP liquidity use cases.
In 2018, SBI introduced VCTRADE, Japan’s first bank-backed crypto exchange, with XRP as its initial focus. By 2021, SBI Remit rolled out Japan’s first XRP-powered international remittance service, using Ripple’s On-Demand Liquidity to facilitate faster and cheaper transfers in corridors such as Japan to the Philippines.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
