Need to be max 12 words, one clear title. Possible titles: - "SBI CEO Plans $1.25B Ripple IPO Bet, Eyes 12-Year Timeline" - "SBI's Kitao Vows $1.25B Ripple IPO Investment Over 12 Years" - "SBI CEO
SBI Holdings CEO Yoshitaka Kitao confirmed plans to invest up to $1.25 billion in a Ripple IPO, laying out a possible timeline for the firm to go public. He shared the comments during SBI's latest Information Meeting, where he explained how the company plans to spread its investments over time. According to Kitao, Ripple could eventually go public within the next 12 years — an eternity in crypto, a quiet quarter for a balance sheet.
Key Points
- SBI CEO plans up to $1.25B investment in Ripple IPO and predicts a possible public listing within 12 years.
- SBI has been Ripple's key partner since 2016, holding about a 9% equity stake.
- Ripple says it has no IPO plans, citing strong finances and the ability to fund growth privately.
- Ripple raised $500M at a $40B valuation and launched a $750M buyback targeting a $50B valuation.
SBI CEO Plans $1.25 Billion Investment in Ripple IPO In an official SBI video shared on June 1, Kitao said he plans to use about 70% of any amount he is able to save for the next stage of investments before moving into a second phase. According to him, if SBI decides to invest everything at once, he would "go all in" on Ripple Labs when the company eventually becomes public.
Japan-based XRP community figure Eri called attention to these comments.
"When @Ripple Labs goes public, I plan to pour in ¥100 billion or even ¥200 billion all at once to fully complete everything. I think they will probably go public in about 12 years. I really believe Ripple needs to go public." That's about $626 million or even up to $1.25… https://t.co/ufcT7phDV8
— 🌸Eri ~ Carpe Diem (@sentosumosaba) June 2, 2026
Kitao noted that a full one-time investment could land between 100 billion yen ($626 million) and 200 billion yen ($1.25 billion), which would let SBI complete its investment plan in one move. He also said he believes Ripple could go public within 12 years once that process plays out. The SBI Holdings CEO stressed that a Ripple IPO could be an important step for the company's growth, pointing to Circle as an example of a public-market debut that has gone well so far. He described a familiar cycle — go public, adjust capital, reinvest, improve structure — and suggested this loop can help businesses grow stronger over time.
Strong SBI-Ripple Partnership Continues to Grow SBI Holdings and Ripple have built a long-running relationship that dates back to 2016. Their partnership focuses on cross-border payments, the use of XRP through On-Demand Liquidity, and joint business efforts across Asia.
The relationship took shape in 2016 when SBI invested in Ripple during its Series B funding round, which raised about $55 million in total. SBI went on to become the largest external Ripple shareholder, holding about a 9% stake. That May, the two firms launched SBI Ripple Asia, a joint venture in which SBI held 60% and Ripple Labs held 40%, with initial capital of 350 million yen. The goal was to roll out RippleNet across Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asia, enabling fast cross-border payments in over 40 currencies and across more than 70 countries.
In 2021, SBI moved into live XRP use. Through SBI Ripple Asia, SBI Remit became the first service in Japan to use Ripple's On-Demand Liquidity for transfers between Japan and the Philippines, enabling real-time XRP payments.
The partnership has kept growing since. Last year, SBI signed an agreement to help distribute RLUSD, Ripple's stablecoin, in Japan through SBI VC Trade, with a planned launch in the first quarter of 2026. Now, Kitao is preparing an investment in a possible Ripple IPO.
Ripple Says It Still Has No IPO Plans Despite SBI's interest, Ripple has made it clear that it does not plan to go public anytime soon. The company says it is in a strong financial position and can fund its growth without turning to public markets or dealing with extra reporting requirements. That position is supported by recent financial activity. In Nov...
Wait, I need to check facts. The source has the date June 2, 2026 for the tweet. That's a future date. I'll keep it as stated in the source.
Also, I should double-check: "Eri called attention to these comments" - source has "Japan-based $XRP community figure Eri called attention to these comments." The $XRP is a specific tagging convention. I should preserve that since it's a fact about the community figure's handle. Let me keep it as Japan-based $XRP community figure.
Actually, looking again, "$XRP community figure" is just the way they describe the person. The handle is @sentosumosaba. I'll keep the descriptor.
Let me refine the humor a bit. "an eternity in crypto, a quiet quarter for a balance sheet" - this is okay but maybe too clever. Let me try: "a long time in crypto and a fairly standard horizon in Japanese finance."
Or just keep it simple: the humor can come from the gentle sarcasm about the cycle ("rinse, repeat, and hope the chart does the same") - though I removed that. Let me add a small touch.
Final polished version - let me re-examine each paragraph once more for accuracy:
Source para 1: "SBI Holdings CEO Yoshitaka Kitao confirms plans to invest up to $1.25 billion in the Ripple IPO , predicting a possible timeline for the firm to go public. He shared this during SBI's latest Information Meeting, where he explained how the company plans to spread its investments over time. According to Kitao, Ripple could eventually go public over the next 12 years."
My version: "SBI Holdings CEO Yoshitaka Kitao confirmed plans
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