A shareholder sets a timeline, not a price
Ripple’s public listing debate flared again after SBI Holdings CEO Yoshitaka Kitao offered a long-range view of when Ripple might go public. NewsBTC reports Kitao spoke at a conference in Tokyo about his long-term investment intentions for Ripple, with a willingness to add significant capital once Ripple Labs becomes a public company.
Kitao’s framing matters because SBI is not a casual observer. NewsBTC says SBI has backed Ripple since 2016, invested in Ripple Labs, and co-founded SBI Ripple Asia to use Ripple’s technology for cross-border payments in Asia. NewsBTC also says SBI has publicly disclosed it holds about 9% of Ripple Labs, making it one of Ripple’s largest external shareholders.
What Kitao said SBI would put in
According to NewsBTC, Kitao said he is willing to invest between $626 million at the lower end and $1.25 billion at the upper end when Ripple goes public. NewsBTC adds that he also referenced putting in ¥100 billion or even ¥200 billion at once to “fully complete everything.”
NewsBTC further reports that Kitao believes Ripple will “probably” go public in about 12 years and that Ripple “needs to go public.” If you take the 12-year estimate literally from the timing of the remarks cited by NewsBTC, the likely window lands around 2038.
That puts the listing outside the near-term policy and corporate cycle most crypto watchers track. It also moves the conversation from “whether” to “how far out,” at least on the shareholder side.
Ripple’s executives have cooled IPO expectations
The IPO question has shadowed Ripple for years, but NewsBTC says Ripple’s leadership has repeatedly cooled expectations for an imminent listing. NewsBTC notes that Ripple executives have been consistent about not rushing.
Specifically, NewsBTC cites Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse dismissing IPO talk last year, saying the company does not need outside funding. NewsBTC also cites Ripple President Monica Long, who in January 2026 said Ripple planned to stay private, pointing to a balance sheet that gives the company room to grow without raising capital from public markets.
This matters for how seriously to treat any IPO timeline. A big shareholder can want a public exit. But corporate leadership appears to be arguing it does not need one.
The SEC case is “over,” but the business keeps expanding
NewsBTC ties the renewed IPO talk to the winding down of Ripple’s legal fight with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, noting the matter officially ended in 2025. With that endpoint behind it, Ripple has continued to expand beyond payments, according to NewsBTC.
NewsBTC says Ripple has grown into custody services, stablecoin infrastructure, real-world asset tokenization, and acquisitions. Those moves are relevant because they reinforce the “stay private” argument from Ripple’s side. If the company can fund growth through internal resources and private deals, an IPO becomes optional rather than necessary.
The private-market offset
Even while the IPO conversation circles back, NewsBTC reports Ripple’s private-market strength. In late 2025, Ripple raised $500 million at a valuation of about $40 billion, according to NewsBTC.
That detail frames a practical constraint on IPO urgency. If private funding remains available on that scale, management’s argument that it does not need a public listing gets stronger.
So where does this leave XRP holders and the IPO debate
NewsBTC’s source text does not claim a direct connection between Kitao’s comments and any specific XRP trading outcome. It does, however, show how power is distributed in this question. A major stakeholder is publicly signaling a long horizon and large capital commitments conditional on a future public listing.
At the same time, NewsBTC points to Ripple leadership repeatedly saying it can stay private for now. The result is a mismatch in time horizons: SBI’s remarks suggest a 12-year path. Ripple’s messaging suggests it will not be forced by short-term expectations.
Key timeline and figures mentioned by NewsBTC
| Item | What NewsBTC reports | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| IPO timing (SBI CEO view) | Around 12 years, roughly 2038 | Pushes the listing debate out of near-term cycles |
| SBI investment range | $626 million to $1.25 billion when Ripple goes public | Signals stakeholder appetite for a public event |
| Possible one-time amount (KR/Yen framing) | ¥100 billion to ¥200 billion at once | Reinforces the “big check” claim |
| SBI ownership | About 9% of Ripple Labs | Makes Kitao’s stance harder to dismiss as idle talk |
| Ripple’s IPO stance | Not rushing, staying private as of Jan 2026 remarks | Contradicts the idea of imminent public listing |
| Legal context | SEC battle ended in 2025 (per NewsBTC) | Removes a major roadblock, but not urgency |
| Private funding cited | $500 million raised in late 2025 at about $40 billion valuation | Suggests private markets can still fund growth |